Don't Panic!
by boz4PM
Summary: Penny is panicking. Where is she? How did she get here? How is she going to get home and whose backside will she kick first when she does? A woman lost in Middle Earth wearing only her pyjamas. This can't be good... (STRONG language; NOT a M-Sue)
1. You have to be kidding

**"DON'T PANIC!"** - an LOTR fanfic by **boz4PM**

**Disclaimer:** I own none of it. Except Penny. I do own her (well, someone's got to). The rest is all the property of The Great Man Himself (JRRT) before whom we are not worthy. I hope I do not get him turning over too fast: a gentle rotation, perhaps, rather than an out-and-out spin.

This story was written in response to THIS story challenge as proffered by Viv on : "Stuck (Really) in Middle-earth - We've read them before: 21st c. gal is zatted back to Middle-earth. But what would it_ really_ be like for a modern person to find herself (or himself) in Middle-earth? Fic should tackle such issues as getting lost, not having appropriate survival skills, craving twinkies and other processed-food treats, having no air conditioning, being surprised by the plumbing (or lack of it) situation, experiencing uncomfortable allergies to dragon scales, etc. The intrepid time-traveller could also answer, once and for all, those niggling questions (_do_ elves wear underwear?) and set the record straight."

This is what I came up with ...

(Warning: strong language, especially in chapter 4 when Penny gets VERY upset indeed)

_Edit, Feb 6th 2008: By popular request I have made a Character List for both this and the sequel (Okay, NOWPanic). Should you ever need it, you can find it here: http://boz4pm(dot)livejournal(dot)com/268905(dot)html. :)_

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Chapter 1** - _"You have to be kidding..."_

This was a good dream...

Roxanna opened her eyes and found herself staring at a clear blue sky. The sun was shining, the birds were singing in the nearby forest. She sat up and looked around herself. She beamed.

On the other side of the nearby river she could see delicately carved buildings that shone brilliantly in the sunshine. She gasped in wonder. She recognised it immediately as Rivendell, home of Elrond (that bloke who looked exactly like the one from that computer film with Keanu Reeves in it). She closed her eyes and opened them again. No, she was not dreaming: she was really here. Here, in Middle Earth, by some wonderful miracle.

This was her destiny. Aged fourteen and with perfect skin, teeth and nose, she knew she was meant to be here. Her pointy ears had always meant she was picked on at school but here things would be different. She would fall in love with Legolas and the entire Fellowship would fall in love with her. She would save Boromir, warn them about the Balrog, perhaps persuade Theoden not to fight and die in battle.

She heard the sound of hooves and turned, smiling, to see two horses approaching. One had a tall man atop its saddle who was unkempt in appearance but stunningly good-looking underneath his stubble. The other horse, also with a saddle and bridle, carried an even taller figure with long flowing blonde hair and behind him sat a short squat bearded man in a helmet.

She beamed again, flashing those perfect teeth at them. "Hello there, Aragorn! Legolas! Gimli! Wow, it's really great to see you guys, you know!"

They stopped their mounts and descended, eyeing her warily. Aragorn spoke. "What are you doing here? You are young to be wandering unaccompanied in these parts."

"Ah, but Aragorn, you gorgeous hunk you," she grinned, "I am Elrond's long lost niece."

Aragorn smiled.

Legolas smiled.

Gimli smiled.

Roxanna suddenly felt slightly nervous.

The man, elf and dwarf exchanged a look. "What do you think?" asked Gimli.

Legolas shook his head. "No doubt about it."

Aragorn nodded. "My sentiments exactly." He drew his sword. "Die, Oh Mary- Sue, spawn of Morgoth!"

Roxanna's head flew several yards before it rolled into a hollow.

There was a snort of laughter from Penny as she turned over in her sleep. Yes, this was a very good dream. She could still smell the fresh air and sense the fresh outdoors even now. She could feel herself waking up but in that half-dream state where the line between fantasy and reality is blurred.

This was terribly vivid, though. She could even feel a drizzle on her face. She rolled over and as she did so, her cheek hit something wet and cold. She sat bolt upright in shock and her eyes wide open. She looked around her... and started screaming.

After a while she stopped long enough to take a breath. 'What the bloody hell is going on!' she thought to herself, still trying to take in where she was. Well, not that she _knew_ where she was. She definitely knew where she was _not_ and that was at home, in bed, waiting for the alarm to go off so she could trudge her way to another day at the office.

She pinched herself. Hard. She pinched herself again. She slapped herself.

No, she was definitely awake and this was not a dream.

She stared, open-mouthed, at the scene around her. She was in the middle of a field. Well, actually to be more precise, since she could see no fence or boundary markers anywhere, in the middle of the great outdoors. There were hills round about and a wood to one side in the distance. It was drizzling. She was cold, wet and still in her pyjamas.

She tried to focus. Who the hell would do something like this to her? How had they got in to her flat? Without her waking up? And, more to the point, where the hell was she? 'Bastards didn't even get me dressed, or give me shoes or a coat!' she thought. She was going to kill someone when she got home. Heads would roll, and very likely there would be various people she would not be speaking to again for a very long time, if ever. She did not even have money or credit-cards with her. How was she going to get home? She was beginning to panic a little now. She could feel tears in her eyes.

"Get a hold of yourself, woman," she muttered. First things first, she needed to find a phone. Or find a person. Anyone, in fact. There had to be someone nearby, a house or a farm or something.

She looked around her: nothing for miles into the horizon. No building or moving thing anywhere that she could tell. She shivered slightly. She was freezing her backside off. She could not feel her toes anymore. She started hopping about from one naked foot to the other, rubbing her hands together and blowing on them as she tried to consider her next move. She scanned the hills. They might give her a vantage point. There were three fairly big ones so she made her way to the one that looked the nearest.

It was hard going. She kept stepping on stones, thistles and stinging things. At one point she stepped into nothing and disappeared up to her neck in a bog. She managed to crawl out, swearing loudly, now absolutely soaked to the skin, filthy, in pain and stinking. She was _really_ going to kill someone when she got back home.

As she hobbled along the side of the bog she realised it stretched interminably between her and the hill she was aiming for. She had no idea how long she had been walking. Even if she could have judged where the sun had moved to it was invisible through the lowering grey rain clouds that filled the entire sky above her. She turned and ambled toward the next nearest hill. It was a lot further away than she had realised and a lot steeper and bigger than it looked when she reached it at last.

By the time she finally reached the summit she was exhausted, her feet cut to ribbons, and the drizzle had become a steady rain. She shivered and clutched her arms about herself as she scanned the horizon from her vantage point. Only now did she realise that the rain would limit her vision quite considerably and she could not in fact see terribly far. There were no signs of life anywhere that she could tell. She cupped her hands to her mouth and yelled as loud as she could.

"HELLOOO! ANYONE AROUND? HELLO! HELP! ANYONE?"

She could hear her voice fading into the rain around her. She strained to listen, but heard nothing. Not that she would have heard much above the patter of the rain, falling heavier now, around her. She felt utterly wretched.

As she turned around and around, still shouting every now and then, scanning as far as she could squint into the distance she thought she spotted something. In the opposite direction from which she had walked there seemed to be a line. A brown line that meandered along in the distance. A road or a river, perhaps? If it was a road then there may be a car she could flag down. At the very least it would have to lead somewhere: a house or a town or village. "Thank God," she murmured and, wrapping her arms about her sodden clothes in a useless attempt to keep warm, she headed off.

In a nearby wood, Gildor and his companion had heard the shouting. They had both immediately strung their bows and then quietly headed for the edge of the trees where they could see what was causing the noise. They gasped in disbelief: some idiot was screaming at the top of the hill, waving their arms about, and generally calling a great deal of attention to themselves. In these dangerous times it was about the most stupid thing you could do.

Gildor peered through the rain.

"Human," he murmured to the man by his side, "A female but I have never seen clothes such as those in all my many years. She is soaked to the skin and... yes... she is barefoot."

Halbarad looked stunned. "Barefoot! She must be mad!"

Gildor nodded. "Well, mad or no she won't stay alive too long if she keeps that up." The woman had started shouting again. They could both hear her clearly enough but neither understood what she was saying.

The man shook his head and sighed, "I will go and see what she is about."

"Rather you than me my friend," Gildor grinned. "Well, in that case, I shall continue on my way. You are heading East as it is, but I must visit old Bombadil. I have not seen him in a while."

Halbarad nodded in acknowledgement. "Navaer."

"Navaer," called Gildor over his shoulder.

Halbarad watched as Penny trudged down the side of the hill and headed towards the road. He could see she was shivering even from this distance. Every now and then she stumbled or cried out as her cut feet trod on something sharp. He sighed and shook his head once more. Why him? Always he seemed to end up with the lunatics or foolhardy. No doubt she had come from Bree. He would take her there and leave her there. They would look after her.

Penny was nearing the road.

Well, 'road' seemed a little grand for what looked little more than a dirt track. She sighed. No chance of a passing car along here, unless possibly a Range Rover or tractor. Still, it was a sign of life in this wilderness and it had to lead somewhere. She was so cold now she barely noticed the rain anymore. Her feet were completely numb for which she was grateful: at least it meant she could not feel the cuts and bruises anymore. Dimly she was aware of a gnawing pain on her thigh and another on her leg just behind her knee. They had been growing steadily for some time. She ignored them and just kept heading for the road.

Suddenly she heard a voice behind her. She gasped, spinning round, to see a horse with a tall man, wrapped in a cloak, staring at her through the downpour.

"Oh, thank God!" She grinned. "Hi. I know this probably looks really weird, but I have no idea where I am or how I got here. Could you take me to a phone, please?"

The man did not answer.

She scowled. Great. She finally runs into someone and they turn out to be a complete Neanderthal. Brilliant. Absolutely fantastic.

"Hello?" She waved her hand at him, "Anyone home?"

Now she had stopped moving she was shivering again, quite violently. The man got down from his horse and came towards her. As he did so she saw he had a sword hung from his belt and a bow and quiver on his back.

'Even better,' she groaned inwardly, 'I've wandered into the middle of some bloody re-enactment society shindig. Dear God!'

He stood before her, hands on hips. He spoke once more, clearly a question but what language he was talking in she had no idea. She stared at him open mouthed.

"Sorry? I don't understand."

Maybe it was the accent. He repeated his question, or at least she thought he did, she couldn't be sure, but no, it was just as incomprehensible as the last time.

She tried a different tack.

"Me," she pointed at herself, "lost. You know, 'lost'?"

She looked around her looking confused, scratching her head and then shrugging her shoulders at him in an effort to explain. He stared at her in bewilderment. She sighed.

"Phone? Umm.. House? Hotel? Taxi rank? Oh, God! HELP ME, GODDAMMIT!"

She started swearing profusely and turned to leave. This was clearly completely hopeless. The man was obviously a moron.

She was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. He was looking kindly at her and he had removed his cloak, which he now wrapped round her. Well, that was gentlemanly of him. Maybe he was not such a complete moron, then. She smiled gratefully at him as she shivered into it and wrapped it round herself. "Thank you," she said slowly.

He seemed to guess what she was saying, smiled and nodded his head. Then before she could do anything more he lifted her up and onto the horse and then quickly climbed the saddle to sit behind her.

As he did so she realised he stank. Absolutely reeked of she knew not what. Unwashed odour filled her nostrils, and mixed with the smell of damp horse and damp leather. Her head spun and she pinched her nose shut. The man pulled the reigns and the horse galloped off towards the trees.

Penny had never been on a horse and screamed as it struck out. Suddenly she felt an arm round her waist to steady her. This bloke was getting a bit fresh wasn't he? She was grateful all the same. She didn't feel like she would fall off now. She shut her eyes though, unable to cope with it all.

Soon enough they were under the cover of the trees and out of the worst of the rain. He stopped his horse, climbed down and offered her his hand. She took it and began to slide rather inelegantly out of the saddle. In the end he had to take hold off her and lift her to the ground before she completely fell on her backside. She turned to him but he was gone, disappearing into the gloom.

It wasn't long, though, before he was back with a bundle of twigs and dry moss that he soon built into a pile. He produced a tinderbox and set a fire going. Then he beckoned her over to it and she sat gratefully thawing out her fingers against it. She was still soaking wet and cold, but this was at least a little better than ambling about in the rain.

She looked at him. Tunic, leggings, boots, arm guards, sword, daggers, bow, the whole works. Must have cost him a pretty packet. My, these reconstruction guys were dedicated. She had gone out with one once. Mad as a bicycle. Very sweet but completely barking. She could not cope with it in the end. She barely saw him because every weekend was spent driving the length and breadth of the country taking part in the Battle of Tewkesbury or some such.

The man was talking to her again, asking questions. There was nothing in what he said that sounded even vaguely familiar. She shrugged and smiled apologetically at him.

Then it was her turn. "Do you speak English? Parlez-vous Francais? Sprechen zie Deutch? Espagnole? Italiano? Er.. Mandarin Chinese? Anything!" He looked just as baffled as she no doubt had just done. This was not going well.

Halbarad, meanwhile, was very confused. She clearly didn't understand a word he said and whatever she was speaking it was no language he had ever heard before. He wished suddenly Aragorn were with him, or even an elf. Aragorn had travelled widely and might have recognised her tongue, as might an elf if well read enough. He sighed. He had tried asking her who she was, where she lived, what she was doing here, but to no avail. He had used Westron, Sindarin, even dredged up his limited Quenya. He tried throwing a few Easterling terms at her – the little vocab he knew of – and that got no response either.

It flashed through his mind that he should keep on his guard. These were strange times and much evil afoot. The more he thought about it the more he did not like it: a stranger, clearly not speaking the language (or pretending not to), in strange clothes and muttering in a foreign tongue. No, he didn't like this at all. If no one recognised her in Bree he might have to consider taking her with him. Elrond would to know about this and would know what to do with her. He was going to keep on his guard with this one.

Penny shivered once more. The feeling was coming back into her toes and she could feel the cuts stinging. She shifted slightly and winced as she did so.

The man said something to her, stood to his horse and rifled through his pack. He produced a pot, which he filled with water from his water sac and hung above the fire to warm a little. He wandered off into the darkness of the trees once more, looking down at the ground on either side of him as he did so. He soon found what he was looking for. He cut some athelas, returned to the fire, put the herbs in a bowl and poured the warm water over it.

She watched him fascinated. 'Foreign battle-reconstructionist who fancies himself as an outdoor woodsman and is hippy herbalist. My God I do pick 'em!' she thought to herself.

He was pulling some material into strips and soaking them into the athelas. Then he reached out his hand to her, smiling. She looked at him utterly mystified. He pointed at her legs and said something. She shook her head still not sure what he was driving at. He sighed and bent down to pull out a leg to hold her by the ankle. He pointed at her foot and repeated the word he had just said.

"Oh!" she said. Then she smiled. "Thank you."

Halbarad washed her feet clean of the dirt and inspected the damage. He shook his head. She had seriously hurt herself, stupid woman. The soles of her feet were covered in scratches and cuts, even a bruise here and there. He could see a rash forming on one side of her ankle, though what on earth could have caused it he had no idea. There was nothing round here that could have caused it as far as he knew. He pulled out the few thorns he could see by the light of the fire. Then he wrapped her foot in the athelas soaked bandages and tied it securely. Then he did the same with the other one.

As he did so her pyjama trouser leg slipped down her leg exposing her calf and knee. She could now see one of those two spots of pain she had felt earlier - the other one being on her thigh. She screamed.

Halbarad looked up at her suddenly. She was scrabbling at the back of her knee screaming and whimpering in alarm and disgust. He stopped her saying, "Let me see," and saw she had a huge leech attached to her.

Without a word he took a burning stick from the fire and touched it against the leech, which fell off instantly. The woman scrabbled backwards on her backside as quickly as she could. He stood now, still brandishing the stick.

"Are there any others?" he was asking. He could see she didn't understand. "Any more? Like this?" he said, picking up the leech and waving it at her. She screeched something at him and waved her hands in terror. He sighed, threw the leech to one side and came over to her. He spoke gently, "Look I can get them off easily enough, but you need to tell me if there are any more? Do you really not understand what I am saying to you?" Her eyes were wide with fear and he could see tears in them.

Penny loathed creepy crawlies at the best of times but that had been truly vile. When he had just come at her with a burning stick too! Madman! And now he was twittering at her in his own language and waving the damn thing at her.

"Don't you bring that anywhere near me!" she squealed. He seemed to understand because he threw it away then. He was talking to her again, gently, but insistent. She had no idea what he was driving at. She shook her head and shrugged.

He stood, went to his pack once more and started unpacking it. Near the bottom he found what he was looking for - a spare pair of leggings and an undertunic. They would swamp her but at least they were dry. She would catch her death if she stayed in those clothes of hers. Even if they were dry they would not keep out the cold night air. He threw them at her.

"Here. Put these on."

She stared at him, then nodded, then turned to look as if to where she might dress. He pointedly turned his back on her, taking back the now cold stick to the fire and then continued walking till he was on the edge of the little clearing and kept his back to her.

Even so Penny still decided not to risk it, and hid behind a tree. As she peeled off her sodden pyjama top she shivered in the growing dusk. She looked down and felt her back for any more of those foul leeches but couldn't see or feel any. She pulled on his tunic. It was a bit big for her, but she rolled the sleeves up a little and it was better than nothing. She sniffed at it. Yup, that stank too, though not quite as badly as he did. Mainly of leather and mustiness and sweat. She made a face.

She pulled off her pyjama bottoms and inspected her thigh. Yup another one. Oh God, and this one was HUGE. She whimpered, resisting the urge to scream because that would just bring him running over. She closed her eyes and screwed up her courage and pulled at it. Yeurgh! It was slimy and disgusting and she really thought she was going to throw up. It wouldn't budge.

She looked round the tree. He was still there, on the far side, his back to her. She crept out toward the fire and took a branch from it. Still trying to keep one eye on him to make sure he didn't turn round (though what she would have done if he had she had no idea, other than scream at him and run back to the tree) she gingerly hovered the stick over the leech.

"Eewwww...," she whispered under her breath as she pressed the hot end against it and with a sizzle it dropped off and fell to the floor.

As she stuck the stick back in the fire she glanced up at the man. Had his head moved just then? She stared at him. He was stock still. She scampered back to her tree and quickly pulled on the leggings and tied the fastenings. As she did so she suddenly wondered how authentic his costume was. He clearly didn't wash that much when he was 'in role'. Did he wear underwear? And if not, had he worn these leggings before? She bent and sniffed...

She froze.

Oh my God. She was not going to think about it. She was NOT going to think about it. She was SO going to kill someone when she got home.


	2. Bunny Stew

**Chapter 2** - _"Bunny Stew"_

Penny gathered up her PJs and stalked back to the clearing to find there was no sign of 'The Stink-Meister'. She spread her clothes over a nearby bush in a vain attempt to dry them. She did consider hanging them over the fire but suspected she'd probably end up burning them or herself if she tried.

Now she could inspect them in the firelight more closely she could see they were stained a filthy mud brown colour from where she had fallen in the swamp. She had a tear in trouser leg and the bottoms were covered in mud splash marks. Now she had them off her she could tell they stank too.

'Great. Well, they're completely bloody ruined. I loved these PJs too,' she thought. "Bugger it, damn and blast!" she said out loud.

She looked round. Still no sign of him. She was desperate for a wee she now realised. Dare she risk venturing off without him tracking her down and finding her? She jiggled about a bit. No, she really needed to wee. She crossed her legs and bounced up and down. Dammit, she had no choice. Better go now than wait till he came back and then have to try and stop him from following her or trying to explain in hand gestures where she was going. That was not a scenario she liked the idea of.

She scuttled off in the direction she had got changed hoping, wherever he was, he would not come that way and find her by accident. She went as far as she could without losing sight completely of the fire in the gloom, dived behind a tree and relieved herself. The question flashed through her mind: what she would do if the 'other' call of nature came upon her? She tried not to think about it. He'd have taken her to a town or house by then... wouldn't he?

As she stumbled back to the clearing on her bandaged feet she could see he was back. He was crouching over something to one side and hacking at it with a fairly big knife he had pulled from his belt. He looked up as she neared and grinned, said something and pointed at what it was he was doing.

Penny noticed in horror he had blood on his hand and on the knife blade. Then she looked at what he had on the ground before him. A rabbit. It's head was lolling to one side, it was partially skinned and had one foot cut off already. She clutched her hand to her mouth, ran to the side of the clearing and threw up.

Halbarad laughed even if he was surprised by her reaction. Surely she had seen animals skinned and prepared before? He shrugged. She was an odd one that was for certain. He watched her, retching into the darkness. She was going to put him off eating if she carried on much longer. He could tell she had little to bring up, though. How long had she been wandering about in the wilderness? She could not have come far, given that she was barefoot. Her feet would have been in an even worse state if she had.

He wracked his brains as he worked on the rabbit, removing the skin and the head now and setting to work on gutting it. He heard a groan as he cut into the belly to start gutting it and looked up to see she had turned towards him, had seen what he was doing and turned away once more, clutching her stomach and retching.

He shook his head and sighed. "Have you never seen someone do this? I refuse to believe it. What is the matter with you!"

He wasn't expecting a reply but had to vent his exasperation at her strange behaviour. In any town or village market you would find animals, skinned or not, hung above the meat stalls. What in Arda was her problem?

"You there!" he called to her once he was done skinning and gutting the carcass. "Hey! You there!" She turned to him, looked at the skin, head and entrails on the ground and turned away again groaning. He muttered a curse and came over to her struggling to carry pot, water-sac, knife and the rabbit meat. "You. Help me, would you?" he growled.

She turned, scowling. "What do you want!" she snapped at him.

God, he was disgusting! He didn't wash, probably didn't wear underwear and now was butchering wildlife. Freak! Utterly, utterly vile. The sooner she could get to a town and get shot of him the better as far as she was concerned.

He was waving the animal at her. She could cope with it a bit better now it looked less like a real rabbit and more like something she would see at the supermarket. He was holding out the water sac to her and saying something. He did not look happy. Tough! She wasn't happy either.

With hand gestures and much grumbling he managed to convey that he wanted her to hold the water-sac and pour it over the meat to wash it as he cut it into pieces. The washed pieces then went into the pot. As he picked up the pot and took back the water-sac, having put his knife back in its leather scabbard on his belt, he muttered something and pointed to where she had thrown up with a look of disgust on his face.

"What the hell do you expect? Dear God, do you think I see people cutting the heads off bunnies every day!" She felt her stomach lurch at the thought of it and groaned, clutching her stomach again.

He sighed, clearly exasperated with her, and repeated what he had said. He gestured with his foot, kicking the earth.

She looked at him. "Oh for pity's sake! Does it really matter?"

He was glaring at her.

"Fine! FINE!" She bent down and covered it with leaves while he stomped back to the fire.

As far as Halbarad was concerned, she was really beginning to annoy him. She did not have a clue. Fine, he did not expect everyone to be completely 'au fais' with outdoor living but she behaved like she was some rarefied princess. Her reaction to the rabbit had really irritated him as had her sighing and 'hrumph'ing at having to help wash the meat. Who in Mordor did she think she was? Luthien herself? He growled to himself. Typical! Absolutely typical! There was always one and he had to be landed with them. He hung the pot over the fire, filling it with water and stalked off to find some herbs to season it.

Penny watched him go, muttering to himself. Good. She was glad she was annoying him. Maybe he would take her to somewhere sensible as soon as possible to get rid of her as soon as possible if that was the case and that was just fine with her.

A thought suddenly struck her. What was a reconstructionist doing with a sharp knife? 'A VERY sharp knife,' she thought, remembering how it had sliced through bone like it was butter.

He still had his quiver over his back but his sword was propped up against a tree on top of his pack. She turned to look the way he had just gone. He was in the distance, his back to her.

"Good," she murmured.

She snuck over, as easily as she could on bandages, and tried to pull the sword part way out of its scabbard.

"Bloody hell this thing is heavy," she muttered.

She grasped the scabbard and pulled as hard as she could. With a 'schlack' sound it slid out by a few inches. The metal shone brilliantly in the firelight. Even from here she could tell it was sharp. She let go of the scabbard and tentatively stroked her thumb against it.

As she did so she heard him shout from the trees. She gasped, cutting her finger against the blade and dropping the sword on her foot.

"Ow! SHIT! Argh! FUCK, SHIT, OW!"

Halbarad was running to her now, his face black as thunder. "Stupid," he was muttering to himself, cursing himself inwardly for leaving his sword unattended. She was clearly trying to arm herself against him. This did not bode well. He was even more suspicious of her now.

Penny was sucking her thumb as he slowed and strode towards her. She was really bloody irritated with him now. What the hell had he shouted at her for? Idiot had made her cut herself! He was SO annoying!

God, he looked pissed off, though.

What worried her even more, now she thought about it, was that that sword was _sharp_. Really _bloody_ sharp. What the bloody hell was a battle reconstructionist doing with a sharpened sword! And a sharp knife? It wouldn't surprise her if those bloody arrows were sharp too. In fact, come to think of it, if he was a reconstruction freak where were the others? They were always in groups. This guy was alone and clearly camping down for the evening.

'Oh shit,' she thought. 'This loony is too loony even for the reconstructionalists. Oh, my God. Oh, shit. Oh, oh, shit. This isn't good.'

Halbarad had reached her now. He was standing in front of her, herbs in one hand, knife in the other.

"What on EARTH do you think you are doing! You touch my sword again I WILL kill you, you understand me?"

He was snarling at her, the menace in his voice and the glint in his eye unmistakeable even if Penny couldn't understand his words. Looking at him, she was suddenly very, very frightened.

"I was just looking at it," she stammered. "I didn't mean to... I'm sorry, okay. I'm sorry. Look, I even cut myself on the damn thing." She waved her thumb at him, tears in her eyes now.

His expression softened slightly as he saw she had hurt herself and heard her tone with him even if couldn't understand her.

"Why the hell is it sharpened away? Bloody dangerous thing to be walking about with! You're certifiable, you know that!" She turned to go, sucking at her thumb and feeling utterly miserable. She was lost, alone, and now stuck with some unwashed pyschopath miles from bloody anywhere. She burst into tears.

Her tone had told him she was sorry and had meant nothing by it. He would stay on his guard still but he now suspected she had been curious more than anything else. Why in Mordor draw a sword and touch the blade? She could have had her finger off. He shook his head. The more she revealed about her ignorance the more bizarre he found her and the more worried he became. There was something very wrong here but he could not tell what.

He realised he had scared her by his reaction. He pocketed his knife and walked to her, grabbing her shoulders gently and turning her.

"Here, let me see," he said, trying to keep his tone as gentle as possible as he took her hand away from her mouth and inspected the cut. It wasn't too deep, but it was bleeding. He sighed and shook his head. He looked at her. "Swords are sharp things. Not toys." She blinked at him. He pointed to the sword, "Do not touch." He shook his finger at her. She seemed to understand and nodded.

He held her thumb up to her mouth and she sucked at it again while he put the herbs in the pot and went to his pack once more. He found his pot of balm and the material he used for bandages and came back to her.

"Give me," he said and held out his hand to her. She gave him her hand. He smeared balm into the cut and she winced and drew breath over her teeth. Then he tore a strip of material and wrapped her thumb.

She was grateful and managed a smile. 'Don't they have sticking plasters round here?' she wondered. Bandaged feet, thumb the size of balloon, she must look a right state. He was smiling at her in return so he had clearly calmed down a bit, then. He had obviously been telling her not to touch his precious sword. Yeah, like she was going to go anywhere near _that_ thing again! What was she? Stupid? She was still wary of him though. He had seemed harmless enough before but now she was nervous of being in the presence of this man, a complete stranger, armed and with a temper on him. The flash in his eyes when he had roared at her had really put the wind up her.

She sat on the opposite side of the fire from him, watching him nervously and with not a little disgust, as he scraped the inside of the rabbit skin. When he was done, he dug a hole with his knife and put the scrapings, entrails and head of the rabbit into it and covered it all up. Then he sat by the fire, having got a whetstone from his pack and sharpened his knife. She watched him, his face orange in the fire's glow, sharpening the blade with obvious delight and expertise, stopping every now and then to drag his thumb across it to test its sharpness. She shivered and hugged herself.

He was really beginning to freak her out.

Her mind started racing. She could hear the patter of the rain on the leaves above her so she would get soaked again if she made a bid for freedom. It was not like she even knew where she could run to and besides he was not exactly holding her by force either.

She was most scared about tonight. She would not be able to sleep a wink now, she knew.

First thing in the morning she would head off on her own. Then she remembered he had a horse and could easily run her down. Yet, surely, if he was going to do anything he would have already done it? He could have raped her then and there when he had met her, or killed her hours ago. He did not look that mad. Well... other than the fact that he was dressed like something from the thirteenth century and was carrying a sharpened, fully functional sword. Yeah, because that was SUCH normal behaviour!

She groaned and her head sunk to her knees. Why, oh why, was this happening to her? Why! Why would someone do this to her? Did someone really hate her this much?

She could feel tears coming now. She did not even know where she was. She could be anywhere. It suddenly occurred to her she did not even know how long she had been asleep for. If she had been drugged she could have been out for days. She could... oh God... she could be anywhere, literally anywhere in the world! She was panicking again.

"Calm down," she muttered. "We'll see what happens tomorrow." She glanced at Halbarad now poking his knife into the boiling pot to check on the meat, "If I live till tomorrow that is."

The rest of the night was spent between her alternating between panic and fear.

Halbarad filled his one bowl for her and let her eat first. She looked at the wooden spoon he had given her like he had slapped her in the face. She looked at it, then at him and then back to the spoon.

"You expect me to eat with this? It's the size of a ladle. You really are taking this authenticity thing a bit too far, don't you think?" She sighed and shook her head.

He looked a little peeved at her clear disapproval. She did not want to upset him again. 'Just play nice. Keep him happy,' she thought. She smiled.

"Thank you," she said slowly. "Really." She sniffed at the bowl and beamed at him in her best fake smile. "Yum! Smells great."

The fact that it smelt like rat wee was not going to deter her. She stuck the spoon in and managed to slurp some of the 'sauce'. The grease from the rabbit floated on the top of the liquid in the bowl and stuck to her tongue. She tried not to grimace or gag. There was no salt in it so it tasted vile. She swallowed quickly. He was looking at her expectantly.

"Mmmm," she forced a smile. "Delicious." She raised a thumb at him. He looked mystified. She furrowed her brows. 'That sign is international, surely?' she thought. She shrugged. Obviously not. Weirdo.

She gave up on the sauce and tackled the meat, bringing her fingers to it. It was not bad, she had to admit, even if it tasted insipid without any seasoning to it. It wasn't the greatest meal in the world but, given she hadn't eaten all day and her stomach was rumbling, she did not much care.

She could see him watching her underneath his hooded eyes as he leaned back against a tree next to his pack. "Keeping an eye on his precious bloody sword, no doubt," she muttered.

She forced herself to drink down as much of the sauce as she could but had to admit defeat after a while before her stomach revolted and brought back the rabbit she had managed to consume. She put down the bowl and spoon. She forced a smile at him.

"Thank you," she said again slowly.

He nodded, stood, came and took the spoon and served himself now, throwing the bones from her meal on top of the freshly dug earth where he had buried the rabbit remains.

He could tell she had not liked it.

Bloody women!

Well, when you lived rough you had to take what you could get. He could hear Gildor or Glorfindel whinging at him even now in the back of his mind: "Gah! Halbarad, there is no salt in this stew! And would it kill you to carry an onion or two in your pack?" Onions! A Ranger carrying onions! Damn elves! Well, she had eaten without much of a fuss and had pretended to try and like it. At least she was making an effort.

He slurped at the sauce. He paused. Okay, even he had to admit it wasn't brilliant, but it was better than nothing or lembas yet again and that was good enough for him. He could see her watching him as he ate and that she seemed a lot more nervous of him now. He mulled over this. She was a worry and his suspicions were definitely raised now.

Between the two of them they had finished the rabbit – it being relatively small. He poured what was left of the sauce away under the darkness of the trees and buried the bones. Then he undid the bedroll – little more than a blanket – from the back of his saddle, handed it to her and, keeping his sword with him, gave her his pack to use as a pillow. He took back his cloak, wrapped himself in it and sat with his back against a tree trunk.

Penny blinked at the blanket he had handed her. He was expecting her to sleep on the ground? Of course. Typical. Too damn sensible to have a sleeping bag or something to sleep on. Too much to ask to have a plastic knife and fork with you when you go camping or even a spoon small enough to feed yourself with properly. Too much to even carry salt with you, it seemed.

"I mean you CAN get little plastic pots to carry it in, you know," she muttered to herself.

She plonked his pack down on the ground near to the fire and settled down under the blanket he had given her.

"Ow!"

She sat up and proceeded to remove every twig, every stone she could find.

Halbarad grinned as he watched her. He had heard her grumbling to herself. Well, it was just a few hours ride to Bree tomorrow and then, he hoped, he would be shot of her. If he had to take her to Rivendell with him he was likely to strangle her before they got there if she kept up this attitude.

He sighed as she finally settled down, keeping her back to the fire and him. He knew she wouldn't be comfortable but neither was he. He would sleep up against the tree. That way, if she stirred in the night to go for his sword again, he would be sleeping lightly enough to wake immediately.

Neither trusted the other. Both suspected the other of being a threat and more dangerous than they seemed.

As Penny dozed fitfully through the night she clenched her teeth. When she was not feeling panicky and scared she was livid. Fuming. Someone was going to pay for this. This was _abuse_. Had to be. She would get the law involved. This wasn't bloody funny. She'd sue the buggers. Prison would be too good for them. She could be home, in her warm bed, snuggled up with her laptop and a mug of cocoa.

She felt tears come to her eyes.

Bastards! Utter, utter bastards!

She whimpered, sniffed and dozed even as the tears fell.


	3. The Horror of Bree

**Chapter 3** - _"The Horror of Bree"_

Halbarad came back to the little camp under the trees from having filled the water-sac from a nearby stream. The sun was up. It was several hours after dawn and the morning was well under way.

She was still asleep.

He shook his head. They needed to be off.

He had heard her whimpering and crying in the night. She had not made any attempt to go for his sword again either. As a consequence, it meant he had softened towards her a little. She seemed to be utterly lost. If it were not for the fact that she could not have travelled that far, judging from the state of her, he would have assumed she had wandered into Arnor from a distant land, unaccustomed to their practices or language.

It was all very odd.

He kicked over the traces of the fire, threw the last unburnt twigs and sticks from it under the trees and buried the signs of their presence as best he could. She stirred at the noise. There was a groggy groan from underneath the bedroll and she rolled over, blinking at the daylight.

Well, he had not killed her in the night, then, Penny mused to herself. That was a definite plus.

What time was it? It felt like it was some ungodly hour. Her back was killing her and her head was throbbing. That must have been the worst night's sleep she had ever had. She had kept expecting to find him leering over her with a knife to her throat. Added to which on several occasions in the night her shoulder, hip or back had started aching against the hard earth. Thus while she had slept, admittedly, it was for no more than a few hours maximum and even that had been fitful.

She groaned again just for good measure and sat up. He was staring down at her, arms folded.

"What do you want?" she muttered.

He grinned, crouched down and grabbed his pack now she had taken her head off it.

"Let me wake up, why don't you?" she grumbled.

She felt dreadful. Her feet were throbbing, her head felt like it was wrapped in a plastic bag and she ached all over. Her mouth was dry and she became conscious of the fact that she hadn't brushed her teeth for two days... or possibly longer... she didn't know. She reached a hand to her hair. It was all matted and no doubt had leaves and twigs in it now. She sighed. This was hateful. She attempted to run her fingers through it but gave up after a while. Pointless. She just smoothed it down as best she could and left it at that.

Halbarad saw her attempts and chuckled. She was as bad as an elf. Well, tough. She would have to wait till they got to Bree before she could brush her hair. Keep things to a bare minimum when you were on the road, that was his motto, and that didn't include carrying combs or onions, no matter what Gildor said. Or soap. He was looking forward to having a bath at Bree. Old Butterbur might be a pain in the backside at times but his beer was good and he had decent sized tubs available for his guests.

He had been rootling around in his pack and found what he was looking for: lembas. The perfect breakfast. He was starving and not best pleased at having had to wait for her majesty to wake before he could eat. He had seriously considered kicking her awake at first light so he could get to his pack but knew she had slept little and had relented. He broke off a piece of lembas and offered it to her. She had rolled up the bedroll and came to sit in front of him, taking what he was offering with a smile. He placed the water-sac between them so she could help herself.

Penny took the lembas suspiciously. She sniffed it. It looked harmless enough. Something like a giant biscuity flapjack or stale toast with the crusts cut off. There was no more forthcoming though she knew he had put a great big chunk of it back in his bag. Mean bugger. She sighed. What she would not give for a bowl of cornflakes right now... A croissant... A doughnut... _Three_ doughnuts!

She nibbled at the corner of the lembas gingerly. She was surprised. It tasted quite good. After last night's boiled rabbit fiasco she had been wary but this was really quite delicious. It had a sort of honey-ish flavour to it: buttery, sweet but not sickly.

She scoffed the lot and then looked at him expectantly, hoping for more, but he had stood to tie his pack and bedroll to his saddle. It was clear that was all she was getting for breakfast, then. She took a swig from the water-sac. Well at least the water was fresh and clear. As good as evian. Though not quite as good as gin.

Oh, for a gin and tonic...

The thought of water made her realise she needed a wee. He was clearly getting ready for the off as he now turned for the water-sac to tie that to the saddle also. She stood, hesitatingly. She wondered if she should try and say something, though quite what or how she had no idea. There did not seem much point. It would no doubt cause more confusion and wasn't worth the effort. She turned and ambled off into the trees. He looked up and watched her go, shrugged his shoulders and finished tying the water-sac.

She went quite a distance. Whenever she thought she had gone far enough she could see him still and panicked that he would be able to see her. He would no doubt have guessed why she had gone wandering off. Even so it made her uncomfortable knowing a complete stranger knew what she was up to. She squatted behind a tree and tried to pee as slowly and quietly as she could. No mean feat and one that meant she was a lot longer than she might have been. She suspected she needed to relieve something else as well but she was damned if she was going to do that squatting behind a tree. No. She would wait, thank you, till they got somewhere more civilised than the great outdoors.

She ambled back to see he was leaning against a tree waiting for her. She went over to her pyjamas. They were still a bit damp but not sodden anymore at least. She noted he had not put them in his pack. She folded them up and held them under her arm and turned to him. He stood and went over to the horse and said something, looking at her as he did so.

'If she thinks I am putting her reeking clothes in my pack,' Halbarad thought to himself as he watched her, 'She is madder than I already suspect she may be.'

She had thrown him an irritated glance as she had folded them up, so he could guess she was annoyed she would have to carry them. Tough. He was well aware he was in desperate need of a bath and his tunic could do with a good scrub but at least his smell was natural. He did not stink of rotten peat and swamp unlike her. He had nearly gagged as he had sat behind her on the horse yesterday. At least today he would have her seated behind him, since this was more than a few minutes dash under the trees, and thus away from under his nose. First thing he would do when they reached The Prancing Pony was order a bath for her as well as himself.

"Right. Are you ready?" he asked her.

It occurred to him that he should look at her feet again before they set off. Easier done once she was on the horse though. The bandages were falling off her and needed redoing anyway.

Penny ambled over to him looking a bit sulky and clutching her PJs tightly to her chest. Now she was more awake she was aware the headache was not lifting and her head was really feeling a bit peculiar. She suspected she was coming down with a cold. Freezing her bum off in the pouring rain would not have exactly helped, of course.

He lifted her up into the saddle. Was it her or did he grimace slightly and wrinkle his nose as she drew near? Bloody cheek! Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. She sat on the horse with a sullen look on her face feeling really very irritated. She can't have been awake more than half an hour and already he was pissing her off.

Halbarad undid the bandages, inspected her feet, which were healing, smeared some of the balm from his pack over the soles and then retied the strips of cloth. For good measure he grabbed her hand and undid the wrappings on her thumb to have a look at that also.

That cut was healing nicely. Bit of fresh air would do wonders. He didn't put the bandage back on.

As he carefully climbed into the saddle in front of her (not easy to do with her already sitting there and not bothering to move back to give him room to sling his leg over, but he managed) she inspected her thumb and poked at the cut. It was healing, the skin was already sealed and not sore at all. Whatever that stuff was he had put on it, it clearly worked.

Halbarad settled himself on the horse, tapped its flank gently with his foot, spoke to it and it set off through the trees. He could feel her wobbling behind him, trying to keep her balance while clutching her clothes and yet as stiff as board. She was clearly completely unused to horses. Another oddity. He sighed and shook his head. He reached behind himself, found an arm and pulled it. As they broke through the shadows of the trees and into the daylight at the edge of the wood he wrapped her arm around his waist.

"Oi!" she snapped. "What do you think you are playing at?"

She pulled her arm away. The last thing she needed was him getting her to grope him. She shuddered. Eewwww!

He shrugged and muttered something. They had reached the dirt track from yesterday and he now spurred the horse into a trot. Penny bounced up and down uncontrollably. This was not helping her head and it made her bum hurt.

"Hey!"

Halbarad sighed and simply spurred the horse into a canter. If she did not want to hold on that was her affair. Maybe once she had fallen on to her head a couple of times she would reconsider.

As the horse sprang forward she screeched. He felt her slide away to one side and reached an arm back to stop her fall instinctively. At the same time she grabbed him round the waist with one arm, shoved her PJs in her lap and put her other arm round him as well. She clung on for dear life, screwing her eyes shut and pressing her face into his back.

God, he stank. He really did. But then he clearly thought she did too, so fair was fair she supposed.

After a little while the horse slowed to a trot once more. She took the opportunity to surreptitiously sniff at her armpit. She gagged. Oh my God. She hoped they had deodorant wherever they were going, even if he didn't believe in using it. Deodorant. And a toothbrush. And shampoo. And soap. And.. and.. oh, a nice hot bath or .. or better yet a shower. A power shower!

She smiled, drifting off into all the possibilities that lay ahead of her.

She was disturbed from her thoughts by a sneeze. A large one. So large she hit her head against Halbarad's back causing him to turn and glare at her.

"Sorry," she mumbled and sniffed.

Five minutes later there was another one.

Then another one.

Then another.

This was not good. She definitely had a cold.

Halbarad gritted his teeth. If she sneezed over his tunic once more he was going to hit her. She was unbelievable! Vomiting over skinning a rabbit and yet sneezing all over people.

As she sneezed yet again he stopped the horse, turned to her and grabbed her pyjama trousers. He ripped down one entire leg of them. Then he ripped them again so he had a strip. He pulled his knife from his belt, made a cut in one edge of it and then ripped once more. He angrily shoved the large square he had made at her.

"Use it!" he snarled.

Then he shoved the tattered remains of her pyjamas into her lap, turned and set the horse moving once more.

Penny had gasped and watched in utter disbelief, her mouth open, as he had trashed her clothes. She couldn't believe it when he then shoved an impromptu hankie at her. It beggared belief! He had no qualms about getting up to his elbows in rabbit guts, clearly did not believe in washing but insisted on burying vomit and blowing your nose.

She spluttered, incandescent with rage.

"Those were my favourite PJs, you bastard! God. It's not my fault I'm sneezing. You've got a bag full of rags you can wrap my feet in but I have to blow my nose on my own pyjamas. Thank you so bloody much! Git!"

Halbarad stopped his horse.

He did not know what she had just said but he did _not_ like her tone. He didn't _have_ to rescue her. He didn't _have_ to take her to Bree or feed her or let her use his bedroll so he slept sat up against a tree all night.

Ungrateful madam!

He turned to her, his face twisted in anger.

"Look, you," he growled, "I have had just about enough of you. Any more from you and you can get off the horse and die out here for all I care, understand me?"

He jabbed a finger at her as he spoke and then pointed at the ground. He turned back and the horse moved again.

She had understood him alright: 'Put up and shut up or get off the horse'. She stuck her tongue out at him. Sod. She didn't really have a choice. But if she saw anyone or a car come by she was jumping off this bloody animal as quick as you like.

She scowled. Of all the people in all the world she had to be stuck with him. She still could not make him out. She had come to the conclusion he was some reconstruction fanatic who simply took it way too seriously and had taken to living his entire life like that. Mad, clearly, but hopefully harmless enough. She just prayed they would get to a house or town soon.

She blew her nose mournfully and watched the countryside go by.

The track was soon lined with trees on either side. To her right she could see hills rolling away into the distance. She could be imagining it but there seemed to be barrows or stones on top of some of them. She was puzzled. Did they have barrows elsewhere in the world outside of Europe? Obviously they did. Besides, she could not be sure that's what they were anyway.

Soon enough she could see a wall ahead and a huge gate comprising of two large wooden doors. One was shut and even from here she could see there was a smaller door cut into it, big enough that a person could step through it, and square cut into that like a look-out or sentry might use. The other door was open and she could see a grubby looking man sat on a chair to one side of it sucking at a pipe and eyeing their approach.

Thank God! Civilisation at last. Other people. A phone. Maybe a car. She could feel tears in her eyes at the thought she might finally be on her way home.

As they neared the gate Halbarad stopped the horse and the seated man rose to stand in the gateway. Penny had hoped that this man who had rescued her was somehow some freak of nature: that whatever language he was speaking was not representative of wherever she was. All such hopes were dashed as she heard the gatekeeper speak and Halbarad reply. She did not understand a word.

She sighed and let her head drop forward onto Halbarad's back. Where the bloody hell was she? She wasn't stupid. She was well educated, for God's sake. These were white caucasians but not speaking anything that sounded even vaguely European. Admittedly she did not _know_ any Russian, Hungarian or Finnish or anything similar, but even so. It would sound kind of familiar somehow, surely, even if just the accent, the musical tone of the language itself.

Her 'rescuer' (if that's what he was) climbed down from the horse and, taking the reins over the horse's head, led it towards the gate and the man eyeing them both suspiciously as they neared him. Penny scooted forward so she was sitting properly in the saddle. He spoke to the gatekeeper and gestured behind him to Penny. She could see the gatekeeper look round Halbarad at her and give her the once over. He scrutinised her for several seconds then looked back to Halbarad, shaking his head and muttering.

Halbarad sighed. If the gatekeeper did not recognise her she was no resident of Bree then. Nor had she passed through this way, it would seem. Most people would come via the roads, surely, but there is no way she could have passed through the Shire either without causing rumour and comment so that meant she had not come East or West.

He thanked the man and headed on through the gate and up the hill towards The Prancing Pony, mulling over this news in his head. No, there was nothing for it. He would have to take her to Elrond. He would see if anyone at the inn could help but otherwise he had little choice.

He groaned inwardly. The idea of being stuck with her for a week filled him with dread. Next time he would leave Gildor to deal with strange women wandering in the countryside. Or else leave them to the wolves or trolls or worse.

He scolded himself then. No. No matter how bizarre and irritating she might be she didn't deserve that. Particularly not now the Riders were abroad.

He shivered slightly at the thought. That had been ill news indeed that Gildor had brought him: the Nine riding once more. He shook his head. And now strange incomprehensible women appearing from nowhere. Yes, Elrond needed to know about her, that was certain.

Penny was staring about her in increasing confusion as they slowly made their way up the hill. Someone was ripping the piss, weren't they? She stared as people walked past or alongside them: everyone was in fancy dress.

Suddenly it seemed her rescuer was simply one of several. These were no doubt his fellow reconstruction fanatics at last. She had never come across anything like this before: everyone living out little roleplaying lives in 'Ye Authentic Genuine Medieval Village'. God, they were all loonies. She felt her heart sinking. This couldn't be happening. This had to be someone's idea of a joke.

The stench from the place was indescribable. Even as she sneezed into her piece of pyjama leg she held the cloth there in a vain attempt to keep out the smell. There was a sewer running down one side of the road which itself was little more than hardened earth with some cobbles wedged into it. Halbarad was carefully picking his way round the horse shit in the road but she could see someone ahead busily sweeping it up and shovelling it into a barrow.

Authenticity was one thing, but open sewers? Dear Lord. And she thought him not washing was bad.

She suddenly had a moment of pure fear. She needed the loo. She knew that now and was feeling quite uncomfortable already. If this place had open sewers...  
Oh God, no. No. Surely not. They would have a port-a-loo at least, wouldn't they? Wouldn't they?

She began to wonder if she hadn't made the wrong decision back there in the woods.

Added to which... if they did not have toilets... would they have a phone? Or a car? They would have to have some means of contacting the outside world, surely, even if only by post. They couldn't live completely cut off. Could they?

Or could they?

A child ran past, holding two chickens over his shoulder. He was barefoot.

'Barefoot? On these streets?' she thought and shook her head. They must be riddled with disease. Oh shit! She had shared a water-sac with him. What if..?

She groaned. Then she sneezed. She felt utterly miserable.

Even as she did so a thought flicked through her mind. Was it her or did that boy have hairy feet? She shook her head. She was imagining stuff now.

They had come to a three-storey building, its oak beams and whitewash making it look very authentic to Penny's eye, and Halbarad led the horse through the central arch and into a courtyard.

"Very Stratford-upon-Avon," muttered Penny. "Shakespeare would have loved it."

It dimly occurred to her that that was what was wrong with this place. The buildings looked very much in the Northern European style. They wouldn't have looked out of place in some English 'Olde Worlde' theme park. It was all deeply peculiar.

A short fat man came bustling out of a door under the arch and trotted up to Halbarad. They clearly knew one another. Halbarad spoke to him and gestured at Penny and the fat man nodded, said something and scuttled off. Halbarad came to her and held out his arms to help her down. She managed a bit better this time and didn't nearly fall on the ground as last time.

She looked about her. She did not know why but she was beginning to feel nervous. The realisation that this man was not some lone loonie had unnerved her quite considerably.

A boy came running forward to take the horse as Halbarad undid his pack and bedroll. He murmured something at the boy, reached in a pouch that hung from his belt and tossed a coin at him. The boy grinned and said something as he led the horse away. Halbarad gestured to the door the fat man had disappeared into. It led into a dark corridor and to one side there was a counter.

Penny noted, with little surprise, there were no electric lights anywhere. Instead she could see a collection of lanterns and candlesticks with partially used candles in them arranged on shelves behind the counter.

The fat man had reappeared and Halbarad was talking to him now, gesturing at Penny every now and then and the fat man, his bald head glinting with the light coming through the door, was nodding and muttering.

"Two rooms and I want baths for both," Halbarad was saying. "Then we'll take some food. Separate from the company, I think. Oh, and I need shoes. Well, she does. I need to talk to you about her, too. Found her wandering lost a few miles West of here. Thought she might be local."

Butterbur looked at her. She was filthy, dishevelled and clearly wearing this Ranger's clothes. Her hair was tangled, and from what he could tell, cut far shorter than he had ever seen a woman wear her hair since it barely reached her shoulders. He studied her face, what he could make of it through the grime.

He shook his head. "Can't say as I recognise her, sir. But then, once she's scrubbed up a bit it may jog something in the old noggin. But no, no, I can't say I have seen her before."

Halbarad sighed. He had not expected Butterbur to have known her if the gatekeeper didn't but it had been worth a try.

Butterbur scuttled round the counter and started leading the way down the corridor and up the stairs to their rooms. Penny shuffled along behind him, Halbarad following behind her.

She was too exhausted, her backside aching from the horse, and feeling too unwell with her head cold to start throwing questions to Butterbur now. She had, when he had first appeared, tried asking him if he had a phone and had put her thumb and little finger up to the side of her head in the, surely universal and international, sign for a telephone. He had looked at her as if she was completely mad so she had just left it at that.

It was then that two things happened almost simultaneously that made her feel like she was losing her sanity completely.

First of all, a short figure came bustling past them on the stairs, hrumphing and grumbling at having to push past them. He was dressed in chainmail and a leather jerkin with large, heavy boots. He had an axe slung over his back and was wearing a helmet. He had the longest beard Penny had ever seen, divided into two and plaited. There were plaits come out from underneath his helmet too.

Penny started laughing.

A dwarf. A bloody dwarf. Okay, this was just becoming ridiculous.

The dwarf glared at her and growled. Butterbur had turned to look at her, a worried look in his eye. Halbarad hissed at her sharply and poked her in the back.

She giggled, clamping a hand over her mouth. They clearly took all this role-playing stuff very seriously. She muttered a 'sorry' and bit her cheeks as the dwarf continued past them.

Halbarad murmured an apology to the dwarf and explained she was foreign. The dwarf grunted. 'What in Mordor is wrong with the woman!' Halbarad thought to himself. She definitely could not be local if she had never seen a dwarf before. He shook his head. The more he learnt the more she confused him.

As the dwarf went past Penny could not help but stare. There was no sign of prosthetics on his face and the hair seemed very real. Surely, close up, you would be able to tell it was plastic and makeup? 'WETA would be proud,' she thought. It was very authentic. Really real. SO real, in fact, that...

It was then she spotted someone waiting at the bottom of the stairs to allow the dwarf to get past and then follow them up. It was a boy. Definitely a boy. Aged about eight or nine...

And yet...

As he neared them she could see, by his face, he was quite a bit older than that, adult in fact. Yet he was the height of a child. He had bare feet. Large feet. Large hairy feet. He had curly hair and slightly pointed ears pointing out through his tousled mop. Again the prosthetics looked very realistic.

She did not laugh this time. She groaned. Her head fell to her hands. Now she knew. Now she understood. This was someone's really sick idea of a joke. And it was not funny.

She looked round at Halbarad and suddenly saw him in a completely different light.

He thought he was a bloody Ranger. My God. Historical reconstructionists were bad enough. She of all people should know. But reconstructing a world that never existed...!

She roared with laughter at him and Halbarad just stared at her in disbelief.


	4. Clear As Mud

**Chapter 4** - _"Clear As Mud"_

Halbarad scowled at her as he stood on the stairs. He was really beginning to think she was insane. He wondered if he should bother Elrond with her at all if that was the case. Perhaps he should just leave her here under the care of the good people of Bree. She wasn't from here but she would be looked after. Her behaviour was becoming more erratic and bizarre.

She had finally overcome her laughter and, still giggling, was following the bemused Butterbur up the stairs to their rooms.

The laughter at the dwarf had clearly been in surprise and amusement at his appearance as if she had never seen one before. He could understand that though her rudeness had appalled him.

Halbarad hadn't liked the laughter she had directed at him, though. Not at all. He had seen the look in her eye as she had turned to him after watching the hobbit pass them on the stairs: utter derision and contempt. That had been mocking laughter, as if she considered him a complete fool and beneath her.

Halbarad bridled. He had no idea what she thought he had done to deserve such an opinion from her and, given her refusal to attempt to communicate in any language he understood, he suspected he may never discover it. He was still livid, though.

He stomped up the stairs after her. To think he had even been considering getting her a dress this afternoon! Admittedly as much so he could have his own clothes back, but it would have been at his cost. As it was he was paying for her board and lodgings here as well as a pair of shoes for her.

He growled, feeling his jaw tighten and his fists clench. If he wasn't so damn honourable...

Butterbur opened a door and indicated another opposite it. He handed the keys to Halbarad for both and, casting a nervous glance at Penny, he trundled down the stairs muttering to himself and shaking his head. Halbarad, his face pale in his anger now, stepped to one side motioning her to go past him and into the room. She walked in, with a snort, standing with her arms folded looking less amused and more irritated now.

Halbarad shut the door behind them and placed his pack on the floor beside him. He didn't think he would get very far with her, but he was going to try and he didn't want 'the world and his wife' hearing this. She had created enough of a scene on the stairs and brought attention to herself, and himself come to that, as it was. Given what he had heard had occurred a week or two previously when Aragorn had been here it was little wonder he was angry. Gossip and dark whispers had been rife and Gildor had confirmed it all. Rangers would not be welcome in Bree for a long time now though Butterbur he knew would treat them well enough. The rest of the guests here were another matter entirely.

Stupid bloody woman.

"What was all that about?" he growled, turning and glaring at her.

"What now?" Penny snapped.

She could see he was angry. Bloody hell, did he have to take it so seriously? I mean, she liked Lord of the Rings, loved it and considered herself a bit of a Tolkien nut in fact, but there WERE limits. Running about the countryside with a sharpened sword pretending to a Ranger was seriously weird, even by her standards. Communing with people roleplaying their lives away as dwarves, hobbits or Barliman Butterbur was even madder, as far as she was concerned. Her head was throbbing, she could feel her throat was beginning to hurt, her nose was streaming and she felt seriously unwell. The last thing she needed was some prat out-geeking her on the Tolkien stakes and pissing her off even more than she already was.

Her entire posture screamed indifference and annoyance. Halbarad took a few breaths to calm himself. He tried again. He pointed at the door in the direction of the stairs.

"What did you think you were doing? The laughing?"

She didn't flinch, just stared at him scornfully.

"You," he pointed at her, then mimed laughing, "Ha ha. Laughing. Why?" This was like talking to a child. He could see she had understood him, though.

"Oh for God's sake!" she snorted. "Are you SERIOUS! You are this upset about me finding this entire set up completely bloody bizarre and ridiculous! What are you? Deranged?"

She tapped her finger against her head. He understood that gesture well enough because he looked shocked and then very angry indeed. Before he could answer, though, she was off. She was pissed off now. Really bloody pissed off.

"I mean, what the fuck is this all about? I refuse to believe you don't speak English. It's all a bloody con. Hmm? Well!"

She looked at him, hands on hips. He narrowed his eyes at her.

"ENG-LISH," she said, loudly and slowly as if talking to a small child or a very deaf pensioner. "You know, the language Lord of the Rings was actually written in?"

Halbarad was breathing hard. He didn't understand her but knew well enough from her tone she was berating him. It was taking all his strength of will to not hit her, strangle her or walk out. He opened his mouth to say something but she was continuing, her voice rising as she did so.

"Lord of the Rings? Ring a bell, you idiot! You know, books?" She opened her palms like she was reading. "Films? Big blockbuster bloody films that everyone in the entire fucking world has seen?" She did the international charades hand signal for a movie. Halbarad still looked peeved but now also utterly baffled. "Oh, God! You fucking moron! Lord of the Rings! Tolkien! You know, TOLKIEN? J R R Tolkien! _How can you not have heard of Tolkien!_" She was near screaming at him as she said this.

Halbarad's expression was growing more and more confused. Clearly this word she was repeating was significant somehow and it was frustrating her that he didn't understand it.

She threw her hands up in exasperation and swore. Loudly. Then she turned to him with a withering glance.

"Let me guess. You think Peter Jackson wrote the entire bloody thing, right?" Still no reaction from him. "Peter Jackson? Viggo Mortensen? Orlando Bloom?"

She sighed in frustration. God, this guy was a complete IDIOT! He was roleplaying something he didn't even know the author of, let alone seem to even have SEEN the movies. This was getting weirder by the minute.

Halbarad had calmed down a little and was beginning to enjoy watching her rant. He was leaning back against the door, arms folded, watching her with mild amusement as she worked herself up into a lather about Eru knew what.

Penny tried a different tack.

"Fine!" she said through gritted teeth and stalked over to the bed and sat on it. "You refuse to co-operate. You are forcing me to suffer this. Give me a laugh, then. Go on: who, exactly, are you meant to be? Hmm?" She folded her arms and looked at him coolly.

He could see whatever she had asked him she was expecting or hoping for an answer. He just laughed softly and shook his head. He pointed at her and then made a sign with his hand, his fingers opening and shutting against his thumb like a mouth opening and closing, to indicate she talked too much. He pointed to himself, his ear and then shrugged.

She understood him alright: she was yabbering on and he did not understand a word she was blathering on about.

"GOD!" she yelled in frustration through clenched teeth. "Who ARE you? Let's see. FAR too complicated for you to work out a new character for yourself, I mean you haven't even heard of bloody Tolkien so what do you care, right? Let me guess, Halbarad would be too small a part and you look like an egotistical bugger. You reckon you're Aragorn don't you? Aragorn fucking Elessar fucking Estel fucking king of the pile! You can swan about and date Elrond's daughter and be king of Gondor and Arnor.."

She stopped herself in mid withering rant. Halbarad was standing bolt upright. He was staring at her, his mouth open, in what seemed to be utter disbelief.

"Hit a nerve, did we?" she smirked. "Ego punctured a bit, eh?" She laughed.

Halbarad's mind was reeling. All thoughts of not taking her to Elrond fled in an instant.

She had just said his name. She had also used Aragorn's name and two of his other titles. None of those were known outside of the small group of people who knew Aragorn and one was one with which he would be crowned and was unused... ever! ...and 'Estel': only the elves called him that. Round here he was called 'Strider' and _no-one_ knew him as Aragorn. She had mentioned Elrond too.

Eru! Eru and Elbereth, this had suddenly got very serious indeed.

He stared at her. Not quite believing what he had heard. It all been interspersed in her bizarre language too. He was pretty sure she had mentioned Arnor and Gondor as well and that, in connection with Aragorn, could only mean one thing. No one, NO ONE, other than certain elves, Gandalf and the Dúnedain knew of his lineage.

Suddenly he was angry. All this time she had known, or would have been able to tell him something, given him some indication of her knowledge. She clearly did not realise he was Halbarad but she knew of him and that worried him. Worried him greatly. She was not of the Dúnedain, that much was blatantly obvious, yet none other than the Dúnedain or the elves knew him. There was more to her than he had first thought, though he had always suspected as much.

He slowly drew his sword and advanced towards her.

Penny knew reconstruction guys could get touchy and defensive about what they did. Even the best Tolkien geek in the world doesn't like to be mocked, as she knew to her cost when she had explained the concept of fanfiction to an ex-boyfriend and he hadn't stopped laughing till he threw up. But still, this was going a little too far.

"Hey. Now. Ok," she stammered. "You can be Aragorn if you want. Who am I to stop you? Hey? HEY!"

He was getting close now, the sword nearing her throat. The glint of anger and mistrust was clear in his eye. He growled something at her. She felt tears fill her eyes.

He was going to kill her and she couldn't understand him, couldn't communicate. Oh shit. Oh, shit. Why? Why was she here? What the hell was going on!

He asked his question again.

"I don't understand you, you freak!" she sobbed. "I .. d.. don't .. understand.." The tears began to fall even as she sensed how close that razor sharp blade was to her.

"Aragorn. You said 'Aragorn'? What do you know of him? Or Elrond? Or me?" He could see her fear and distress, but he would not relent. He had thought her ignorant. He had thought her mad. Now he considered her a threat.

She looked at him, eyes wide, not knowing what it was he wanted or what it was he was upset about.

"Yes, Aragorn. What about him? Are you Aragorn?" She pointed at him as she asked.

He stopped, hesitating for a moment. He shook his head.

"No. I am Halbarad."

He repeated his name and pointed at himself, though he still held his sword towards her.

She was leaning back, hands behind her on the bed, terrified, trying to look at both him and the blade he was holding near her neck at the same time.

"Fine. Fine," she nodded vigorously. "I apologise. You're not Aragorn. You had the guts to take a secondary character. Good. Good for you. Ok. Good. You're Halbarad. Fine. Halbarad. Good." She was panicking still.

He was looking at her, trying to make her out. "Yes, I'm Halbarad. You?"

He was pointing at her now, clearly asking a question.

"Me?" She put a hand to her chest. He nodded. "Penny." She pointed at him, "Halbarad." Then back to herself, "Penny."

He repeated it, mulling it over in his mind. Odd name for a woman. Very odd.

"It's short for Penelope." Then she realised she had confused him with that so she waved her hand muttering, "Forget it, forget it."

He was not satisfied but didn't think he was going to get much more out of her. It suddenly occurred to him that maybe this woman had met Aragorn, knew him, but then he realised she could not have done if she had thought he might be Aragorn. Perhaps she knew of him, had been sent by someone? Was she looking for him, perhaps? Her fear and surprise at his behaviour seemed genuine enough. She certainly didn't seem dangerous. Incompetent: certainly. Mad: quite possibly. But not dangerous.

He lowered his sword though he still eyed her warily.

As he did so she gasped, leaning forward to take her head in her hands and burst into tears. He felt a little bad then. He had scared her. Scared her very badly. Yet she clearly had no idea of how to behave or when to keep her mouth shut. She was a very foolish woman and would get herself in trouble very quickly at this rate. He sighed and shook his head.

He crouched down in front of her, looking up into her face as she sobbed.

"I'm sorry," he said gently. "Forgive me, but .." he sighed once more. "You will not understand me, I know, but you should not use such names. These are dangerous times and a loose tongue will get you killed."

She was looking at him, sniffing and sobbing.

"Aragorn. No." He shook his head and pointed at his tongue as he said this. He made the talking sign with his hand again and said Aragorn's name once more and shook his finger. She seemed to understand. He hoped she did.

Penny felt utterly overwhelmed by it all. She was stuck God knows where with a bunch of role-playing nutters who had managed to out-WETA Peter Jackson to the point of not washing and open sewers and now she had one shouting at her and threatening her with a bloody sharp sword just because he was playing Halbarad not Aragorn. This wasn't funny. This was.. this was... what the hell WAS this?

On her way up the stairs she had wondered if this was Candid Camera or something: a wind-up that would end up on telly as millions watched her humiliate herself, God forbid, some horrific 'Reality TV' show. But having swords, sharpened ones, waved at you was not funny. Not fucking funny at all. This man was clearly several sandwiches short of a picnic. She had been right to think he was a pyschopath: bloody fruitcake!

She looked at him. Her voice shook betraying her utter despair and confusion and fear.

"Why? Just tell me why? Please. I can't cope with any more of this, okay? I'm ill, I'm tired, and you've really bloody scared me. I refuse to believe you don't understand me. I refuse to believe this isn't some huge wind-up and someone's not going to burst through that door with a camera and a microphone any minute now. Please. I am begging you. Stop. Please, just stop. I.. I just want to go home." She collapsed into weeping again.

Halbarad just looked at her. He shook his head. He wished he could understand her, help her in some way.

"I'm sorry," he said again and shrugged his shoulders, smiling apologetically at her.

"Fine. Just great," she was looking at him, nodding ruefully as she spoke. "No, that's fine. Always the butt of a joke, aren't I? Fine. Well I'll play. I'll play ball. You wanna be Halbard? You BE Halbarad then. You want me to imagine I'm in Middle Earth? Fine. I will. I'll play this so damn well you WON'T HAVE ANY GOOD FOOTAGE OF ME TO USE YOU BASTARDS!" She shouted this last bit out into the room for the benefit of hidden microphones.

Halbarad scowled. Just when he thought she was being a bit more normal she was ranting again.

"Let me just clarify, okay?" She had turned to him once more, the sarcasm in her voice unmistakeable even to Halbarad who didn't understand her. "We're where exactly? Bree? Yeah? And this is, what, meant to be The Prancing Pony? And that fat git out there was meant to be Barliman Butterbur, right? Bloody unconvincing I have to say, but still. Oh don't look at me like you don't know what I am talking about! Bree! The Prancing Pony! Butterbur! GAH! I GIVE UP!" She threw herself back on the bed pulling at her hair and growling.

Halbarad gave up on her at that point. He shook his head. She was giving him a headache. He reached the door and picked up his pack. She was lying on the bed still, muttering to herself and staring at the ceiling.

"Hey, you!" What was her name again? "Pen-ii!"

"WHAT!"

He gritted his teeth. "Me. There." He opened the door and pointed at himself and then at the door opposite.

"Whatever! I don't give a monkeys where you are, frankly. Good riddance!" and she pointedly rolled over and didn't look at him as he closed the door on her.

She burst into tears. Bastard. Pyschotic, fucking bastard. And trying to pretend like he was all nice about it afterwards.

She sneezed.

"Ow!"

God, her head was killing her. The crying hadn't helped. Couldn't he see she was ill? Oh, what the bloody hell was going on?

Before she could continue that line of thought there was a knock on the door. She went to it and opened it.

Two men dragged in a tub. They were followed by two women carrying two buckets each. They promptly poured these in the tub.

"Umm, excuse me?"

She tried to attract their attention but the men left and only one of the women turned to her, smiling and saying something and shutting the door behind her on her way out.

She returned to the bed despondently. After a few minutes there was another knock.

"Come in," she called.

There was a hesitation then yet another knock.

"Oh, for goodness sake," she muttered.

She stomped to the door.

"Yes!"

The women had returned with four more buckets but this time with steaming hot water in them. They were emptied into the tub. One woman stuck a hand into the water, said something to the other woman who nodded and bustled out of the room.

The woman, drying her hand on her skirts as she stood, said something to Penny. Penny smiled apologetically and shrugged. The woman repeated herself, more slowly and pointed towards Halbarad's door and then pulled a face. Then she moved towards Penny and said something quietly. Penny could have almost sworn the woman was warning her about something, about 'Halbarad', because of her tone and the way she kept jerking her head back to indicate his chamber door.

The second woman returned with two more buckets full of water. As she poured them into the tub the first disappeared and then reappeared with two large folded pieces of material, a bar of soap, a scrubbing brush and a comb. The two then smiled and said a few words to Penny who said "thank you" to them. They shut the door and left.

She stared at the tub. Well, it was not the power shower she had dreamt of but, frankly, given how disgustingly filthy she felt, she did not really care.

She wandered over to it and stuck in a finger. Nice and warm. Just right.

She eyed the accoutrements they had given her warily.

Of course. 'Authentic'.

Two nice, non-absorbant pieces of linen to dry yourself with. Delightful.

A bar of soap that would have done nicely to scrub floors in the Victorian age and had no scent whatsoever. She suspected it wouldn't lather either. No doubt she was expected to wash her hair with it too. Brilliant. Just brilliant.

A scrubbing brush that would have also brought up Victorian parlour floors to a brilliant shine but she suspected would take off several layers of skin if she used it on herself.

And the comb.

Well, the comb was less of a disappointment. It was made of bone, she presumed, and was very finely if simply carved. Certainly looked a lot stronger than most plastic combs she'd had the misfortune to encounter.

She started to attack her hair. Better get the worst of the tangles out now than trying after rubbing latherless soap through it. She sighed. No conditioner. No proper shampoo. No toothbrush or toothpaste or deodorant. "Bastards!" she muttered to no one in particular.

She was about to start undressing when she realised she needed to lock the door. She then realised she didn't have the key.

"Why the little shit!" she murmured.

She was about to go and give Halbarad a piece of her mind when there came yet another knock. She went to the door and there, to her annoyance, he stood.

"Where's my key?" she snarled.

He looked at her, irritated by such a reception.

"Key. For the door." She made a locking motion and then indicated the keyhole. "I'm going to have a bath. I do NOT want you walking in in the middle of it." She pointed at the bath, then at him and scowled.

He understood. He had no intention of trying to see her in the bath. Eru! What a thought! He handed her something and went to his room. He returned with her key, which he had simply forgotten to give her.

Meanwhile, Penny was staring at what he had handed her: a pair of shoes. At least she thought they were shoes. They were more like ankle-length leather boots with thick leather nailed to the sole and then laces that wound round the ankle. Almost like leather socks in a funny kind of way. They were clearly a 'one-size fits most' kind of affair, but still: it meant she wouldn't be hobbling about on bandages anymore.

She stared at him.

"Thank you," she said.

She was quite touched, in a bizarre way. After all their sniping at each other she was quite grateful that he had thought of such a thing without her asking him.

She smiled.

He didn't return it. He nodded, turned and walked into his chambers without a word and slammed the door. She heard the key turn in the lock.

He had come to give her shoes and she had bitten his head off. He'd probably just forgotten to leave the key with her. She felt bad now.

She shut the door slowly and locked it.

"No. Why the bloody hell should I feel guilty?" she muttered as she undressed. "He was waving a sword at me earlier, ranting and raving and scaring me shitless. Bugger him! He wants to get upset with me, let him. Useless prat. 'Oh, I'm Halbarad, by the way. Please let me wave me ridiculously sharp sword at you and refuse to speak English or anything else vaguely intelligible because I am THE most annoying arsehole in the world!' Halbarad, my arse!" So saying, she climbed in the bath.

* * *

Author's Note: Don't forget that the name 'Barliman Butterbur' would be a 'translation' from whatever his actual name was (Batti ZilbarÄpha at one point in JRRT's notes), hence Halbarad's not understanding it when she said it. The same is the case for the town name of Bree. Pippin and Merry were also not actually called 'Peregrin' or 'Meriadoc', etc, etc.

See the appendices at the end of ROTK for more about this and also HoME 'The Peoples of Middle Earth'.


	5. Latrine of Doom

**Chapter 5** - _"The Latrine of Doom"_

A knock on Halbarad's door disturbed him as he oiled his bow. He laid down his work and stood, wiping his hands on a cloth and unlocked the door. A serving wench stood in the doorway.

"Excuse me, sir. Batti said the foreign lady travelling with you needed some clothes? Is that right?"

He nodded. After his initial fury with her behaviour and decision he would get her a pair of shoes and nothing else, he had relented and decided, in all honour, he had to get her something to wear. Elrond would think less of him if he did not and, besides, he really did need to have his clothes back. It was double motivation and so he had spoken to Butterbur about it when he had brought him his towels for his bath. Added to which she had created enough of a stir without people seeing her wandering about in male clothing. Even if he hadn't torn part of the garments he had found her in they were hardly suitable for a woman, let alone to wear in late autumn.

The young woman was holding out a dress and an undershift to him saying Batti had asked her if she had an old one she would not mind parting with too much since she was probably a similar height and build to Penny.

"The dress is a bit worn and patched, but it will serve just as well I am sure."

"I am sure it will," he nodded. "I thank you." He reached to his belt for his pouch, "Here, let me give you something for your trouble at least."

She protested, "No indeed! It is an old dress and I am glad I can help her. Is it true she was wandering lost?"

"Yes. If you hear of anything, a travelling party that has lost one of their number for instance, then let me know." She nodded. Before she could protest further he pressed a coin into her hand. "Not a word. I insist," he said as he shut the door on her.

The woman stood for a moment, looking at what he had just given her. Far more than the dress had cost new. For a filthy Ranger he wasn't half generous.

"A fool and his money..." she murmured and wandered off down the corridor, pocketing her coin as she did so.

Halbarad inspected the dress. It had two patches in it, but it was still reasonable enough. Simple, but it would do. Good.

He opened his door once more and stood outside Penny's room. He hesitated. He took a deep breath. Then another. Then one more, just to be on the safe side, and knocked.

Penny had enjoyed her bath. She had inspected her feet while she was there. The cuts and scratches were healing quickly and the bruises were still visible but going green and fading. She had washed her hair, with difficulty, but she managed. The soap didn't lather and left a kind of slimy film on her skin that was vile. Maybe that was the reason for the scrubbing brush, which she had been forced to use in the end on various parts of her anatomy that seemed stained with something brown and immoveable. She now had livid pink scratch marks where she had done so. As she dried herself her only thought was that she would have to get back into smelly clothes.

She had not been long dressed and was tackling her hair once more when Halbarad knocked. She opened the door and could not believe what he had in his hands.

Halbarad tried a faint smile. It seemed to work.

She grabbed the clothes, sniffed them and beamed at him.

"Thank God! Clean clothes!"

"Thank Eru," Halbarad muttered. For once she was not complaining, whinging or muttering. He turned to go, then hesitated and turned back.

"Pen-ii. My clothes. You will need to wash them." She looked at him incomprehendingly. "My clothes," he said again, and reached out to hold the bottom of his undertunic. "Wash," he repeated and rubbed the material between his hands as if he was washing it. He repeated the action, looking at her to see if she had understood him.

She had. She pointed to her bathtub.

"In there?"

He could see the remains of her pyjamas draped over the side of the tub, dripping wet. The bar of soap and the brush were on the floor where she had been scrubbing at her clothes. He laughed.

"What's so bloody funny?" she scowled. "I have to clean them don't I?"

Halbarad couldn't believe it. Washing her clothes in bath water? Where was this woman from? He began to wonder if she really wasn't some grand lady fallen on hard times. She had never seen someone gut a rabbit before and had clearly never washed clothes before. There was water everywhere.

He laughed again, but tried to soften it now. He shook his head and grinned at her.

"No. Out there." He gestured behind him, through the wall in the direction of the stream and the washing stoop the women used. "Down the hill, you'll see it easily enough. I'll show you, or get one of the women to take you."

She had not understood him, but realised there was clearly somewhere else to wash clothes. She nodded. He smiled and left her to change.

The dress was made of a coarse cotton. It was simple in style and the person it was made for clearly had a larger bosom than her because it sagged quite a bit round the front, but otherwise it fitted her well enough. There were buttons down the front of the dress, almost to the waist, so one could get in and out of it easily. It was shaped, but relatively loose and dyed a brown-red colour.

As Penny inspected it she realised it had been hand-stitched. The entire thing. Some poor cow had slaved over this. She balked at the idea. The buttons were wooden and very delicately carved. The shift had been entirely hand stitched too. It was sleeveless, made of an undyed white cheesecloth kind of material and much like an old-fashioned nightgown.

She had to hand it to them, these role-playing guys were very dedicated: working by hand and doing so with obvious skill. That had been clear from the comb too. They were still all barking but she was impressed. It was like living in a commune... but with swords and dwarves. She giggled.

She was grateful for the shift. Somehow she did not feel quite so odd about walking round with no underwear with two layers. Added to which the skirt was long.

She couldn't even remember the last time she wore a skirt this long. She barely wore skirts at all. Still, it was nice of him to go to the costume department and pick her out something.

She loved the patches.

"Very 'authentic rustic maiden of Bree'," she muttered, grinning. She could see herself getting into this.

Then she sighed. No, she mustn't. She had to find out what was going on somehow and get home. She suddenly had visions of her boss ringing her flat to no reply, her mother going crazy with worry, police breaking down her door to find it empty. She felt tears coming into her eyes. Well, if this is what it took to get them to call off the joke and let her go home, she would do it. She would play the good little Bree-lander.

There was a knock on her door once more. It was him, saying her name, no doubt asking if she was ready.

She opened the door for him and sat on the bed to put on the leather shoes. He nodded his approval at her. She looked much better.

She noticed his hair was wet and his hands and face looked a lot cleaner. She wondered if he'd actually had a bath.

'Hold the front page! The Mighty Stinker Stinks No More,' she thought and giggled to herself. He raised an eyebrow at her. She shook her head. "Nothing," she muttered.

She stood, grabbed the undertunic and leggings and bundled them round her sodden pyjamas. She picked up the soap and waved it at him. "Shall I bring this?"

He looked at her as if she was mad.

"Obviously not," she murmured. Then she had second thoughts. She WOULD bring it. She did not even know where he was taking her. Somehow she doubted it would be a launderette. Given the horrific 'authenticity' of everything she suspected she would be handwashing.

She was right, of course.

He led her out of the archway and down the street towards the gate. Then he veered right, stepping carefully over the sewer. He was gentlemanly enough to hold out his hand for her so she could step over without difficulty. She hitched her skirts near to the knee though and the expression on her face spoke volumes.

Halbarad sighed and smirked. Bree was not the most pleasant place in the world, but it was not so bad. She, on the other hand, behaved exactly as an elf would. He had to admit he found the stench fairly unbearable, but it was still amusing to see her disgust and clear nausea.

There was a little path that wound between two houses and through some grass where a few cows were grazing sullenly. They were nearing a stream that ran within the town walls for a while before disappearing underground to eventually join the Brandywine. A washing well had been built round it. It consisted of little more than a roof stood on pillars that were ranged on either side of the bank. The stream was wide and shallow at that point and there were several large boulders dotted about in the water. Steps had been cut and flagged into the banks so that the water could be reached and in several places there were flags angled so they leaned into the water and one could actually sit or kneel on the bottom step, reach the water and use these angled flags to beat the clothes against.

There were one or two women there already, one of them a 'hobbit', and they all turned to smile at the new arrivals. Penny noted, though, that their looks changed immediately on seeing Halbarad. The two women standing near each other exchanged a glance and muttered something before carrying on with their work. The 'hobbit', on their side of the stream, simply turned her back nervously and continued dipping her clothes in the water. Halbarad murmured something to Penny and headed off back to the inn.

"But how..?" Penny started saying to his retreating back. She looked at the stream, the women working there. She groaned. "You have to be kidding me. I have to wash HIS bloody clothes in a sodding river? For God's sake!" She bit her lip but she was sorely tempted to scream several obscenities at the ridiculousness of it all.

"Twenty-first bloody century and these idiots are washing in river water," she muttered to herself, stomping down the path to the washing stoop. "Probably full of cow piss as it is. Delightful. Bloody ridiculous. Farcical. Grrrrr!"

She reached the stream and sat on the bottom step. She noticed the other three women had taken their shoes off so she did also. She took a little time about it so she could watch what they were doing.

It seemed to involve thoroughly soaking the garment in the water, swilling it round a bit, then beating the crap out of it on a stone or a flag. Then you would rinse it once more, bang it against a rock, rinse, bang, rinse, bang. It went on and on. They were really giving it some welly too.

'This looks like bloody hard work,' Penny thought to herself.

She was suddenly grateful she did not have too much to wash. She also noticed they were not using soap. How the hell did they get stuff clean without soap! She had a sudden moment of horror as she realised that was how the cloths she had just used to dry herself with after her bath had been washed. How the bed linen she would use tonight had been washed. How the dress she was wearing had been washed. She shuddered.

Well, her pyjamas were well soaped and scrubbed already. She knelt on the step and rinsed them thoroughly in the freezing cold water. She started scraping the material tentatively against the flag that leant into the water.

She could feel two pairs of eyes on her from across the stream. She gritted her teeth. She glanced up and stared at the women.

"Yes? Can I help you?" she snapped.

The women whispered to each other and carried on with their own work. Penny sighed in irritation and carried on. She was not doing well. She sat back and rolled her sleeves up to beyond the elbow.

"Right, Pen! You can do this, girl. Easy peasy," she muttered.

She lifted the sodden material and started whacking it against the stone. It was not easy given that her fingers were so cold from the water they hurt, but after a few goes she felt she was getting the hang of it. The lessening in whispering and giggling from across the stream seemed to confirm this, which was no bad thing.

After a while she reckoned the pyjamas were done and she turned her attention to Halbarad's leggings. She soaked them, banged them, rinsed them and then got the soap and rubbed it all over the material.

She heard a gasp from across the stream as she did so. She ignored them. They didn't want to wash with soap that was their affair. Stuff 'em!

She rubbed the material together till her hands were near raw. She threw it against the stone violently again and again till she was sweating and panting slightly. She stopped to wipe her brow.

This was hard work, but she found that she could imagine she was pounding 'Halbarad', and that seemed quite therapeutic. She was knackered though. She was rinsing, bashing, rinsing, bashing till she could feel her arms aching. And she still had his sodding undertunic thing to do too! The bugger. Why couldn't he do this?

She looked up at the other women. They seemed to do a lot of bashing for each item and seemed to manage it with a lot more strength than she could achieve. They didn't seem tired in the least. She sighed.

She rinsed the leggings once more and inspected them. They seemed clean enough. She sniffed them.

Still smelt a bit musty. Dear God, this was going to take forever.

She bowed her head and sighed heavily.

Just then she heard a quiet voice behind her. She turned. It was the 'hobbit' woman. She smiled and said something to Penny once more. Penny returned her smile apologetically.

"I don't understand the language here. I'm sorry."

The hobbit nodded and smiled. She worked at the inn and knew Penny was the foreign woman who had arrived with the Ranger. She pointed at the undertunic. She could see this woman was struggling, clearly unused to washing clothes, however odd that may be.

"Can I help you, miss? You look tired and you only have that one garment left to do."

She could see Penny didn't understand her so she bent down, picked up the undertunic, moving to kneel next to Penny and started dunking it in the water.

Penny suddenly realised what she was doing.

"No, no. It's quite alright. Please, you don't need to. It's very kind, but really..."

She tried to stop her but the 'hobbit' just muttered something like a 'shh' at her, grinned, batted away Penny's hand and carried on washing the undertunic. Penny smiled.

"Thank you. Really. Thanks."

The 'hobbit' guessed what she had said and inclined her head, smiling.

So the two sat side by side. The other women had left for which Penny was grateful. She had been ready to get up and punch them if they'd giggled or whispered once more. She noticed the hobbit woman stand, tie a knot in her skirts and then get in the river so she could really fling the undertunic at the stone work. This seemed like good thinking as far as Penny was concerned so she copied her. You could certainly get a better whack against the stone, more force behind the hit from a standing position.

As she rinsed off the leggings yet again she studied the little figure working away next to her. The woman's curly hair was tied up behind her out of her way so Penny could clearly see the hairline and ears. It wasn't a wig. Definitely not a wig. No way on earth it was a wig.

Penny shrugged. So someone short with already curly hair wanted to pretend to be a hobbit? Fair enough. Who was she to stop her. It was the ears that intrigued her, though. She bashed the leggings once more, not wishing to draw attention to the fact that she was staring, but even as she did so the woman was finishing, saying something to her and holding out the undertunic to her.

'Well if she's finished, so have I or I'll be here all bloody day', Penny thought.

The 'hobbit' then indicated they should wring out all the clothes. Penny helped the 'hobbit' with her own washing too that she had in a basket. It involved each garment being held by the two of them and twisted to within an inch of its life. Penny was amazed that garments such as these, hand- stitched, could survive such abuse. It worked though. The clothes were still damp but would dry fairly quickly once they were done. Penny had been surprised how much strength the 'hobbit' showed. As for herself she felt like her arms were about to fall off they hurt so much. The 'hobbit' said something to her and waved farewell. Penny thanked her once more and received a smile. She picked up her clothes and headed back to the inn.

She was not really sure what she was meant to do now but that was not what was concerning her right now, though. What was concerning her was the fact that as that 'hobbit' had stepped out of the river she had seen a clear view of her feet... and there was no bloody way on earth they had been fake.

She had seen the tendons in the arch of the 'hobbit's' foot, the veins on the top of her foot underneath the hair, the way her toes had bent and her skin crinkled as the foot had moved. Her mind was reeling. How was this possible?

She shook her head. A one-off. Freak of nature. Had to be. Someone wouldn't go to the length of plastic surgery... would they? But then, given how mad these people clearly were in their fanaticism for all things Tolkien, she would not put it past them.

Nah. Must have been a trick of the light. Must have been.

Mustn't it?

One of the women who had brought Penny her bath water was walking towards her as she stepped through the door in the archway of The Prancing Pony. She smiled at Penny and, beckoning for her to follow, led her down a corridor away from the stairs to her chambers and indicated a small room to one side. Penny entered cautiously.

There was a roaring fire, a table with low benches on either side of it. Halbarad was sat in one corner by the window smoking an evil smelling pipe. He turned as she entered, took the pipe from his mouth and said something, smiling at her and indicating the bundle of damp clothes.

"Yup. All washed," she nodded. "What do I do with them now?"

As if he had understood her, which he had not, he pointed to one side of the fire. A clothes rack was standing next to it.

"Oh. Right," said Penny and she started laying out the four items over it and positioned it directly in front of the fire.

Halbarad watched her, then shook his head and sighed, though he smiled. He stood and pulled the rack back from where she had placed it.

"We want them dry, not burnt," he grinned.

"So, now what?" Penny asked him. He had returned to his seat by the window and he indicated for her to sit by the table.

As she did so she winced. She really needed the toilet. She was in some considerable discomfort. She had no idea how she would explain what she needed and there was no way on earth she was going to try and explain it to HIM. She mentally kicked herself for not trying to say something to the serving woman who had led her here.

She shifted uncomfortably on her bench. Wriggling just made it worse and meant she wriggled even more. Oh, God. What was she going to do?

Halbarad watched her. She was in pain. Discomfort. Why was she jiggling around like that? She also looked vaguely embarrassed.

Suddenly, he guessed what the problem was.

He stood, went to the door, stuck his head out and shouted for the serving wench. She appeared soon enough. He explained the Foreign Lady, as she was now officially known, needed to be shown the latrines. He also added, remembering her look of disgust as she had neared the open sewer, that she should be provided with a jug of water.

"Water, sir? Whatever for?" The woman stared at him.

"Never you mind, girl. Just do as I ask."

She nodded. Bloody peculiar, that's what this was as far as she was concerned. She scuttled off to fetch a jug.

Halbarad turned to Penny.

"She'll take you. Don't worry."

He sat down. Given her demeanour so far he suspected she might like the opportunity to wash herself and her hands after experiencing the worst latrine this side of the Misty Mountains. Not for nothing had he answered that particular call of nature early that morning in the woods - he was no fool.

Penny had watched all this with interest. She had opened her mouth to try and get the woman's attention but she had left before she could get a word in. She wondered what Halbarad's hand gesture had meant. He had indicated the height of something and asked something of the woman. The woman clearly thought the request odd whatever it was.

She understood when the woman returned a minute or two carrying a jug of the size Halbarad had indicated. She beckoned to Penny. Penny looked at her and then at Halbarad. Halbarad nodded and indicated with his pipe for her to follow the woman. Penny did so.

She was led out to the courtyard and toward the hill into which the two wings of The Prancing Pony were cut. To one side, near the stables, a wooden door was cut into the turf. The woman handed Penny the jug, which she now could see was filled with water, and indicated the door.

Penny looked at the woman, then the door, then the woman again. What was this about? The woman smiled encouragingly at her and indicated the door again. Penny stepped forward nervously.

She guessed what it was when she was within about four feet of it. The stench was unbelievable and she could feel herself gagging. She had no choice, she knew, but it would seem all her worst fears about this place were realised.

She glanced back to see the woman was already half way across the courtyard and heading back to the inn. She stood before the door, one hand to her nose and clutching the jug. Why did she have the horrible impression she was going to find something like the toilet from Trainspotting on the other side of the door? She put down the jug, lifted and tied a knot in her skirts as she had done to wash the clothes just to be on the safe side. She bent to pick up the jug once more, gritted her teeth, took a deep breath of nearly fresh air and opened the door.

Oh. My. God.

The smell hit her like a breezeblock.

The floor was lined with straw and seemed clean enough, though, for which she was truly grateful. At the opposite end, though, was a hole. A large hole in the floor. That was it. There were marks in the earth on either side of it where countless others had stood or squatted before her. She gagged. To one side of the hole there was a pile of large leaves, green and dry, strips of bark and.. you had to be joking, surely... pieces of bone!

She was suddenly very, VERY grateful that Halbarad had insisted she be given water. This was going to be utterly, utterly vile and definitely one of the worst experiences of her life and considering what had happened to her so far in the past two days that was really saying something.

She could feel tears come to her eyes. There is no way on earth any television company in the world could get away with doing this to people. She would sue. There had to be laws against this sort of thing. Then she felt the pain in her stomach again and had to admit that, as things stood, she had little choice right now.

But someone was going to pay for this.

And pay BIG time.

* * *

Author's Notes: "Batti", as far as I can discover, is Barliman's REAL first name (in Westron, presumably).

You CAN get clothes clean without soap if you bash them hard enough and for long enough.

Yes, people DID used to use bone to clean themselves...


	6. Pennies Dropping

Well it's not so funny this chapter, but I have a feeling this story will inevitably get less so as it continues. Apologies for the slow pace thus far, but there is a lot for Penny to take in and to make it realistic we need to see her thought processes through all of this weirdness she is experiencing. Hopefully things will begin to pick up a bit after this chapter. :) 

Specific answers to reviews are in the reviews...

And thanks for reviewing guys: really nice to hear what people think of it all. :)

* * *

**Chapter 6** - _"Pennies Dropping"_

Penny brought the empty jug back inside and left it on the counter. She did not feel she could face Halbarad for the moment and didn't return to the little parlour. She wanted some air, needed to clear her head. There were too many things about this place that were beginning to freak her out a little. She wanted to have a look around this fake 'Bree': find the chinks in its armour. She imagined it like a film set: all painted flats held up with sticks and weights. None of it real.

It would cost a bit to create this kind of set-up, surely? And how come she, an avid Tolkien online nut-case, had never heard even a whisper of this place? It would have been all over ToRN just for starters, wouldn't it? There would be countless LOTR fans willing to cut off their right arm to come here, latrine or no latrine, if word had got out about this place.

But there was something about it. She couldn't put her finger on it.

She came out of the door under the arch and onto the road. She stayed on the opposite side from the sewer and, gingerly picking her way round fresh horse droppings, headed in the direction away from the gate.

She took her time, taking in her surroundings.

She noticed she was getting stared at quite a bit. Scowled at, even. These role-players clearly weren't friendly towards outsiders. That much was certain. Or was this all part of the game? But why would someone go to these lengths just for her benefit? It was all highly unlikely and far- fetched, yet it was the only explanation she could come up with. The idea that there was some community of LOTR role-players somewhere in the world and she had been kidnapped and dumped among them seemed equally ludicrous.

The buildings were all clearly solid and either made to look old or already were. Fences and gates were stained with age and nails were rusted. The cobbles were worn smooth in two lines where countless carts had bumped over them. This had to have been here a while. It made it seem all the stranger that she had not heard about this place somehow on the Tolkien-nut grapevine.

Suddenly she felt a hand upon her arm. She spun, surprised, to find 'Halbarad' glaring down at her. He snarled something at her and pulled her back with him towards the inn. She shook herself free.

"What do you think you are doing! How dare you pull and push me about like you own me! I have the right to walk where I please. I want to see 'Bree' and find out just how mad you all really are. And you can't stop me!" She had her hands on her hips, her eyes defiant.

When Halbarad, still sitting at the window smoking his pipe, had seen her walk past and down the street,he had nearly choked.

News of her arrival would have spread within five minutes of her coming through the gate. That she was foreign, lost, had been wearing male clothing, was in the company of a filthy Ranger and had made a scene at the inn would also be well known by now. Given what had happened the last time 'outsiders' were here and then hooked up with a Ranger, tongues would be wagging and people fearful. The Black Riders would not easily be forgotten, nor should they be.

Even as he had stormed after her he had seen the faces at windows, the glares and whispers of the villagers watching her pass. Worse than that, she was being far too curious. More than once he saw her stop and peer over fences or stare at a hobbit passing her by. Added to which now she was arguing with him. Again. After her performance this morning and her mentioning of names she should not know he had little choice but stick with her and keep his eye on her but it was going to take all his patience to put up with her.

"You are making your presence here far too noticeable," he growled. "If it was not for the fact that it would bring yet more unwanted attention, I would slap you, you stupid wench. What is the matter with you!"

"Worried I might find something, are we?" She was looking at him belligerently, a smirk on her face. "Like a telephone? Or where the REAL toilets are? Electric cables for microphones? Oi! Get your hands off me! Put me down! HEY!"

Halbarad had put his arms about her waist, lifted her off the floor and was carrying her back to the inn. Yes, the villagers were staring, but at least in amusement now rather than suspicion. Let them laugh. Better than the usual surliness and mistrust he got from them. The gatekeeper had been even ruder to him than usual that morning. Halbarad could not blame Aragorn. Nor, indeed, could he blame the villagers themselves. He would be surly and mistrustful himself if Black Riders had been in his village and more than once.

She was still protesting as he put her down, shoved her through the door (though not too roughly, as tempted as he was) and then bustled her down the corridor to the parlour. He closed the door behind them and turned to find her glaring at him in fury.

"I have had just about enough of this! And of you, for that matter! I want to know what is going on! Don't stare at me like I'm some mad woman! This is not funny any more and I won't put up with it. Do you hear me? Talk to me, godammit! Say something. Something intelligible, at least!"

Halbarad waited for her to finish. He had his back against the door to prevent her leaving. She eventually ran out of steam and sat on a chair by the fire, looking both furious and upset.

"Finished?"

His voice was calm and cold. A wiser person than Penny might have realised he was in fact very angry and near the end of his tether. He came over to her, pulled a chair over to sit in front of her and glared at her, his hands on his knees.

"Listen, you stupid woman. I do not know who you are, or where you come from. You either can't or won't tell me, but let me tell you this: you are not leaving my sight till I can get you to Elrond."

She raised her head at him, her eyes narrowed in anger but curious as to what he was saying as he continued.

"Yes, you heard me: Elrond. I am taking you to Elrond. And Aragorn is likely to be there too I imagine. At least I hope he will. If not I will leave you there and go and find him and the tubuk he is said to have joined. More to the point is that YOU," he jabbed his finger at her, his fury clear as he snarled at her, "YOU are a liability and incredibly stupid. These are dangerous times and you have behaved in the most ridiculous manner from when I first laid eyes on you standing and screaming on the top of a hill. I am beginning to doubt your sanity, if truth be told, but even so, given what you seem to know of me and those I love dear, I have little choice except take you with me. BUT, and let me make this ABSOLUTELY clear," and he moved his face close to hers, "You WILL start to behave. Language barrier or no language barrier. If I have to keep you tied up and my sword drawn to do it, I will. I will NOT allow you to jeopardise my life or that of my friends or put them in danger with your loose tongue or appalling behaviour!"

He stopped for a beat, then growled quietly and with menace, "I hope I have made myself clear."

She did not know what he was saying but it was obvious he was very angry. It was apparent that she had irritated him to the point where he was now exploding at her.

She felt very aggrieved, considering she felt she had done nothing wrong, but the way he was talking left her in no doubt that she had better keep on his good side for a while. She was, ultimately, entirely at his mercy given that she didn't know where she was, couldn't speak the language, and had no means of even trying to get home. The fact that he was walking about with a sharpened sword that he had already waved at her twice added weight to her decision. She still didn't know what the set-up was here. She wasn't prepared to risk his anger, on the off-chance that this was a TV show and that he couldn't kill her, and then find out she was wrong. For all she knew he was just one nutter amongst several and no-one would care or miss her if she disappeared.

"I don't see what the problem was," she muttered, feeling tears in her eyes. Then she looked at him, her face twisting into a sneer, "Or is this all part of the roleplay? Oooh! Better be careful or Bill Ferney'll get the Nazgul on me! Ooh. 'Cos I'm SO scared!"

Halbarad had stood and bent to pick up his pipe where he had left it on the hearth. He now turned to her with a gasp, his face etched with shock. He nearly dropped his pipe.

"Did you just say...? WHAT did you just say!"

Penny could see that either he was a very, very good actor (which she doubted) or he was genuinely concerned and possibly a little scared by what she had just said. She had to hand it to them: they really got into character. She laughed.

"Please don't tell me you are freaking because I said 'Nazgul'!"

He clamped his hand over her mouth suddenly, snarling at her. Whatever he said he clearly meant it as his hold on her was stronger than it needed to be. His eyes were flashing with anger and mistrust. He lifted his hand from her mouth and waited. She giggled. He scowled. She bit her lip and tried to look solemn. She failed.

He could see she just found the whole thing funny. That settled it. She WAS insane. In that moment he moved away from her before he really did lose his temper and did something he would regret.

Even as he did so there was knock at the door and a hobbit came in with a linen tablecloth, which he spread over the table and smoothed down. He was soon back with two bowls and spoons, two mugs and a pitcher of beer. Then a tray was brought with bread, cheese, cold meats and a tureen of stew. The hobbit bowed and left them, closing the door behind him. Halbarad turned to Penny.

"Come. Eat something." His voice was neither warm nor gentle. He had had enough of her.

She nodded, feeling very lost and alone all of a sudden and came to sit on one bench. Halbarad sat on the opposite one but pointedly at the other end of the table from her so they were not facing each other. He dished out some stew into her bowl and cut her a hunk of bread, then served himself and ate quietly, not looking at her once.

The stew was good. She now realised that it was only Halbarad who didn't use salt. The meat was suspect though. Of the three pieces in her bowl two were kidneys and the other had a valve in it and she strongly suspected was a piece of heart. She ate round them, enjoying the veggies. She glanced at Halbarad out of the corner of her eye and noticed he was tucking into his offal with relish. Gross!

He poured beer for himself and then clunked the pitcher down heavily between them so she could reach it. She poured herself some. She needed a drink. Her head was beginning to throb again and she was aware that she was sniffing, her nose running.

The beer was surprisingly good. It was no doubt home-brewed or local. It was not dissimilar to the 'real ales' she had tried at various points in her undergraduate years. She thanked God she had been to uni surrounded by Northerners who had weaned her off lager and on to bitter. She drained her mug and poured herself another.

She realised she was actually very hungry. She picked up the bread and, cutting herself some cheese, munched happily enough. Well, she was being fed well by these nutters she had to admit.

She glanced at Halbarad once more. He was still ignoring her. Something about his reaction to her talking about Nazgul had scared her a little and she was not sure she knew why. She shook her head. This was ridiculous. He was getting to her now, making her succumb to all this roleplaying lark.

"Thank God I didn't start mentioning Mordor," she muttered. He glanced at her, glared and carried on eating. 'Fine. I'll just shut up completely then, shall I?' she thought. Bloody hell! She poured herself another mug of beer, ignoring his raised eyebrow as she did so.

Halbarad watched her as she drank her way through her third mug of beer. He had never seen a woman drink quite so much or so fast. Apart from the fact that she was leaving little beer for him, which irked him because Butterbur served a good brew, he little relished the idea of having to deal with this mad woman while drunk. Yet again she was in danger of bringing attention to herself.

He picked up the pitcher and brought it over to his end of the table.

"That's enough of that, young lady."

She scowled at him.

She was beginning to feel a bit woozy. Whether it was the beer or the cold she wasn't sure. She didn't think it would be the beer. It wasn't that long since she left uni and she could still hold her drink pretty well. Well, moderately well. Ok, she couldn't hold her drink at all but it would still take more than three mugs to make her feel as peculiar as she was feeling right now.

She hung her head in her hands. She had a splitting headache. She got up and went to a chair by the fire once more. The clothes were nearly dry she could see. She sat, staring at the fire with her mug of beer in her hand. She was feeling worse and actually feeling cold despite her proximity to the flames.

"Bloody fantastic," she shivered, "I was already feeling like crap but, no, I had to wash clothes in a freezing river till my fingers were numb. Yeah, 'cos THAT's a bloody intelligent thing to do when you've got a cold." She shot a filthy look over her shoulder at Halbarad.

Halbarad had lit his pipe and was watching her. She was looking pale and shivering slightly. He remembered her sneezing this morning. Her eyes were half closed and she wouldn't stop sniffing. She pulled out her handkerchief, blew her nose, and groaned, holding her head once more. She put down her mug on the hearth and leant forward in her chair to get nearer to the fire, hugging herself and rubbing her arms. Halbarad was concerned. She was ill. He cursed himself for sending her to wash the clothes. She was deteriorating rapidly before his eyes.

As far as Penny was concerned the rest of the late afternoon and evening was a bit of a blur.

She was aware of the hobbit returning to clear the table and Halbarad talking to him while gesturing towards her. The next she knew someone was wrapping a blanket round her and talking kindly. She looked up to see it was the hobbit woman from the washing stoop. Someone, possibly the same hobbit woman, was leading her upstairs to her chambers. She was vaguely aware of being helped out of her dress and into bed still wearing the undershift. There was a fire lit in her room. She drifted into unconsciousness.

At some point someone came in her room. She felt a cool hand touch her brow. She opened her eyes but couldn't really focus properly. Someone was trying to get her to sit up and drink something.

She sat up, keeping the sheets and blankets round her as she realised it was Halbarad. It was a mug with something hot in it. She could smell honey... wine... and... herbs or spices or something.

She looked at him blearily. He said something and pointed at his nose and throat. Something for her cold presumably. She drank. It tasted vile. She made a face. He laughed but made encouraging hand gestures for her to keep drinking so she finished it as quickly as she could and then, handing back the mug to him, sank back into the pillow and went to sleep.

Halbarad put another blanket over her. He touched her brow again. She was burning up. Best to let her sweat it out of her system for now but he would have to keep an eye on her.

He had sent the hobbit woman away when Penny had started murmuring in her sleep. Good job he did too. She had mentioned Aragorn several times, and his own name, as well as other things he did not understand. Still, the hobbit had brought him some hot water as he had asked.

He rummaged in his pack and brought out some dried athelas, mixed it in a bowl with the water and put it on a table by her bed.

Penny was vaguely aware of an aroma filtering through to her. She felt her head clearing a little. She opened her eyes and, able to focus better this time, saw him standing over her, concerned, with a bowl in his hand. She smiled weakly.

"Let me guess. Athelas." She chuckled slightly as she drifted back to sleep.

He shook his head. He gave up. How on earth she knew about athelas he had no idea but little she said any more could surprise him he did not think. She had secrets and an untold story that much was clear. He just hoped Elrond could get it out of her.

He stayed in her room all night. Her temperature went steadily up and he kept her well covered to encourage it even though she threw off the covers or tried to. Once she was sweating profusely and the fever had well set in, he stripped the blankets back and started wetting her brow with a cool, wet cloth soaked in the now cold athelas infusion. Sometime in the early hours the fever broke and she became calmer, sleeping more soundly. He could leave her be now. He pulled just one blanket up over the sheet covering her, then went to sit beside the remains of the fire to light his pipe and mull over this strange woman.

She knew of him, Aragorn and Elrond. She had mentioned the Nine and yet had considered them a joke or perhaps didn't believe they existed. This would not have been odd except that few had heard of the Nine and those that had certainly knew them to be real and feared them. No. Little she said or did seemed to make any sense at all.

Just before dawn he could see she was sleeping peacefully and he left then to go to his own room.

Penny was woken by a gentle knocking on her door at six in the morning: Halbarad had asked for them to be woken early. She was surprised to feel her head much clearer and her throat not at all sore. She still had the cold but it was mild and receding now, she could tell. A serving woman bustled in with a bowl, jug of water and a towel. She smiled at Penny and disappeared.

As Penny sat up she saw the bowl of athelas beside her and the extra blankets bunched at the bottom of the bed. She could smell pipesmoke in the room. So he had been here looking after her. She shook her head. He was full of contradictions: snarling at her one minute, refusing to explain anything to her or be reasonable, and then he was giving her his cloak or getting her shoes or sitting with her in the night when she was ill.

She had washed and dressed by the time Halbarad knocked. He was pleased that she looked so much better. He gestured to her to hand him her now clean PJs, which he stuffed into his pack, and follow him downstairs.

In the parlour the table was laid with bread, honey, jam, butter and fruit. As they entered a hobbit wandered past them in the corridor with a pot of tea on a tray. Penny spotted it.

"Oooh! Tea!"

Halbarad saw her reaction and asked the hobbit to bring them some.

"Is he bringing some?" Penny was asking and Halbarad, guessing her question, nodded. She beamed.

Halbarad shook his head and laughed softly. It was rare to find anyone other than hobbits who drank the stuff.

When the hobbit returned in a little while with the tea, Halbarad noticed her staring at the poor man. She couldn't keep her eyes off him. He could see her eyes flicking from the hobbit's feet to his ears and back to his feet. Halbarad sighed and shook his head.

The hobbit left and Penny gleefully poured herself some tea with milk.

"Have you never seen a kuduk before?" asked Halbarad. She furrowed her brows at him. "Kuduk. You were staring at him just now. And the one on the stairs yesterday. Kuduk."

Penny looked at him baffled. 'Kuduk'? What the hell was a 'kuduk' when it was at home?

"Do you mean 'hobbit'?" she asked. Halbarad looked uncomprehendingly at her. Penny was surprised.

She had been irritated and stunned by his not knowing of Tolkien or recognising the name 'Bree' or 'Butterbur' (though it was possible, she supposed) but 'hobbits' were now standard amongst loads of roleplaying things, surely, even amongst those who knew little or nothing of Lord of the Rings. The same was true of 'elves'. That word - 'hobbit' - had to have international currency amongst roleplayers, surely?

"Hobbit," she said again. No, he quite clearly did not know what she was talking about. "Periannath," she said.

Halbarad's jaw dropped. She was using Sindarin!

A slow smile spread across his face. He nodded. "Periannath, yes. It is what the Eldar call them." She nodded as he said the word 'Eldar'.

Halbarad's mind was reeling a little. She knew of the Eldar, then, as well.

"We call them 'kuduk'," he continued. "'Periannath', 'Kuduk': it is the same thing."

Penny was looking at him baffled. Clearly 'kuduk' was their name for 'hobbit'. This seemed very odd that they were translating things into their own language. Why not use that which Tolkien used?

They ate the rest of their breakfast in silence, each mulling over this new level of communication between them and what it could mean. It was only as Penny was following Halbarad to the stables as his horse was brought out to them that she remembered something. From the Appendices. 'Kuduk' – she knew she'd heard the word before! It was the Westron word, the local Bree word, for 'hobbit'. 'Hobbit' had been the Tolkien translation for it.

Her heart was beating a little faster and her mouth had gone dry. Suddenly an already strange situation had taken an even weirder turn.

She stared, her mouth open at Halbarad as he tied his things to the saddle.

They were speaking Westron. Or what they thought was Westron. Her mind was racing. Had anyone created a Westron? She had never been into studying the languages of Lord of the Rings and she was now mentally giving herself the kicking of her life for not doing so. She read the books and knew the stories and enjoyed fanfic but that was about it. She had seen some of the language websites. Loads of Quenya and quite a bit on Sindarin, but little on Westron from what she could recall.

Westron was near enough non-existent, wasn't it? What on earth were these people doing? Was this their native tongue with Westron muddled in? 'Athenticity' seemed to be the watchword round here. Authenticity to the point that... that...

She looked round. That was what was wrong. She had noticed it yesterday.

Everything was too real.

Halbarad had climbed in the saddle, had walked the horse over to Penny and was now holding his hand out for her so she could climb up behind him.

She was in shock. She was trying to process all the information that was now flooding into her head, all those little things she had noticed or only now seemed significant. She was trying to make sense of it. She could feel her heart thumping and she was not sure why. She felt like she had all the pieces to make sense of it all, but she could not see it.

As they moved off, through the archway, and East through the village, Penny suddenly realised she had not had an opportunity to look for a telephone or car or someone sane who spoke English. Then she remembered Halbarad's fury and how he had spoken to her when she had tried to do a rekkie yesterday. This man clearly had other ideas about what was going to happen. She had a brief moment of hope at the thought that perhaps he was going to take her to somewhere else, somewhere where there WAS contact with the real world. Why did she think that unlikely? Why did she feel not a little panicky at all the things racing through her brain?

As they neared the Eastern gate she could see a ramshackle, darkened hovel to one side of the road. She snorted. Bill Ferny's place! Of course.

She sighed and shook her head. What was she worrying about? It was a reconstruction. That was all it was. Why she was here or how she got here she still did not know, but she must not let the buggers get to her. She felt irritated with herself that she'd let herself get freaked out.

She had just convinced herself when she took a last look at Bill's place over her shoulder. There was a figure at the filthy window, staring at them as they rode past. He had slightly sallow looking skin and squint-eyes. Very odd looking. She could see also see another figure stood next to him. He was swarthy with an unpleasant look about him and dark, bushy eyebrows.

Her heart was in her mouth as she realised that Bill Ferny, for it could only be him, had a bruised and broken nose.


	7. That Old River in Egypt

Thanks for all the reviews & positive feedback thus far. Responses to any specific queries are dealt with in my posts in the reviews section. :)

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**Chapter 7** _- "That Old River in Egypt"_

As soon had they passed through the gate, heading East and to Rivendell, Halbarad urged the horse into a canter. This woman's behaviour had been such that he did not wish to delay or slow his journey any more than he had to. He could not work his horse too hard, as he was carrying two riders now, but even so he would work him as hard as he dared and make this journey in the quickest time he could.

Penny held on tight to Halbarad. She was dimly aware that he smelt less. His tunic needed washing still but the body inside it didn't reek anymore. It may be she was also slowly getting used to his smell perhaps.

But she was not focusing on that. She was trying not to focus on anything at all, really, since if she did the image of Bill Ferny's broken nose would inevitably surface. The moment that happened she could feel her grip on reality slipping and sliding away from her. She could feel her heart beating loud and fast. She wondered, briefly, if Halbarad could feel it against his back because it seemed to her its thuds wracked her entire frame.

'Okay. Get a grip. Get a bloody grip. So it was Bill Ferny. Someone playing Bill Ferny and made up to look like he had a broken nose. What's the problem? Come to think of it where on earth did they find that bloke next to him? Exactly how you'd imagine a half-orc to look. I guess... Not having ever seen an orc that is... Dear God, this is bizarre. This is really, really bizarre.'

The hobbits with real feet, real hair and what seemed to be real ears had freaked her out too. She had seen the female hobbit's ears clearly enough at the washing stoop and again when she had wrapped a blanket round her in the parlour. She had had close scrutiny of Nob's ears when he had brought the tea that morning, his feet as well.

Penny shook her head. This was insane. This was absolutely crazy.

The stairs in the inn had been worn smooth, she remembered, as if countless YEARS of guests had tramped up and down them. The building itself, like all of 'Bree', had an ancient quality to it. The floorboards in her room had been aged and stained and creaked. The washing stoop had clearly been there for a very long time and was weather-beaten, the thatch of the roof dark with age. There was no WAY this place had been built in the last six months or a year or even a couple of years.

She was panicking. What did it mean? How? How could she not have known about this place? How could it not have come out with all the amazement at what WETA had done in recreating Middle Earth for the movies? How could information about, frankly, an even more realistic recreation not have reached her ears?

She could not make sense of it. It just would NOT make sense.

Then, as the miles rolled by under the horse's hooves she found herself, after they had been going for little more than an hour and probably a lot less, staring ahead round Halbarad's shoulder in disbelief and with a sinking feeling in her heart.

She could see the road bend left and then follow round the base of a large hill. Ranged along the hill's lower slopes were houses. As she neared she could see it was much more than that. There were not just houses. There were hobbit-holes.

Her mind did a somersault. She was shaking her head and murmuring, "No. No. No, no, no. No, this is insane. No."

As the horse slowed a little to trot past the village of Staddle Penny finally felt like she was losing it completely. Everywhere she looked there seemed to be hobbits: gardening, chatting over fences, hobbit children running in the weak autumn sun...

That was another thing. It was autumn. Well, it felt like autumn. Mid or late autumn.

But... but it was January.

Wasn't it?

Several hobbit holes had their doors and windows open. She could see right inside one or two. These were not fake fronts as had been used for the Hobbiton scenes of the movies. She could tell, clearly, these were real.

'How many three and a half foot LOTR fans ARE there in the world?' she thought. She refused to believe there WERE that many and yet they all seemed to be right here. Her mind was completely refusing to accept what she was seeing.

She buried her face into Halbarad's back. She was muttering, shaking her head. Halbarad could hear her, or was aware of her doing so. He wondered if he was in for the treat of her going off on one at any moment. He also wondered if he should not spur his horse into a canter or gallop before she could try and climb down and start ranting again.

Penny was also thinking. And quickly. In fact her brain was positively racing away. She remembered now the strange hills and the barrows she had seen to her right before they had entered Bree. She was wracking her brains, re-running the journey made by the hobbits and Aragorn in the books in her head.

Yes, she had it.

This was one of the villages they passed by before they turned off the road.

She looked again at Staddle. She vaguely remembered descriptions of hobbit- holes nestling against the slope of a hill around which the road ran.

She looked at the road behind and in front of her, which was running round a hill against whose slopes nestled hobbit-holes.

She was gasping for breath as it hit her. Hit her hard and with a wave of panic strong enough to make her feel physically sick.

They were rounding the hill, leaving the last of the houses behind them as it happened. The next thing Halbarad knew she was screaming, beating against his back, gasping and crying for him to stop. He could feel her struggling to try and get down and he had little option but stop the horse before she hurt herself.

Even before the horse came to a standstill she was on the ground, retching and gasping... and running. Running fast. Running she knew not where but just _away_, somewhere, anywhere because she needed to stop to think, to think and make sense of something insane and ludicrous. What was rushing through her head right now was barely coherent.

'What the hell! What the bloody fucking buggery hell! Just... Oh SHIT!'

She had tears streaming down her face, blinding her. She was stumbling, falling, picking herself up again to keep running only to trip over herself once more. She was sobbing, gasping for breath, and not even sure she knew what it was she found so terrifying.

Halbarad had leapt from the saddle in an instant and was chasing after her. If he did not know better – namely that she was completely mad and capable, it would seem, of just about any unorthodox behaviour you could name - he would say she was scared. Terrified, in fact. Though of what he could not even begin to imagine.

He could hear her sobbing and choking. Watched as she kept struggling forward despite her stumbling, so blinded by her tears that she did not know where she was going. He finally caught up with her as she collapsed once more. She did not try and get up, just lay there, her head in her hands, sobbing and trying to catch her breath. She couldn't breathe. She was hyperventilating. Halbarad, for about the only time in his entire life, was at a loss. He took her by her shoulders.

"Pen-ii! Pen-ii? What is it? What on earth is the matter? Pen-ii?"

She was looking at him, near blue in the face from her gasping, her chest rising and falling rapidly with her quick and near non-existent breathing.

"Shhh!" he said, "Breathe." He blew out.

She copied him, still sobbing in between but knew he was right. She blew out again taking her eyes from him. She did it once more and could feel herself breathing more normally now. She sat up. She looked at him.

"Halbarad?"

He nodded and smiled despite himself to hear her use his name and with such a gentle, sincere tone for once.

"Halbarad. This is serious. Please." Her voice was quiet and full of desperation, and she was still sobbing as she spoke. "If you can understand me, then I beg you. I really, really beg you, with all my heart, tell me I am not going crazy. This place is really scaring me now. I congratulate you all on what you have achieved here. I am a Lord of the Rings fan myself and I can see how authentic you have got it all here, but please, if you have any mercy in you at all, tell me what the hell is going on. Please, Halbarad. Please. I feel like I am going out of my mind."

She looked at him, pleading with him, the tears streaming down her face.

Halbarad, his brows knotted together in concern, incomprehension and pity, could do nothing. He realised she was asking something of him, that it was desperately important to her that he provide it, but he did not know what it was she wanted and somehow he suspected he may not be able to offer it even if he did.

"Pen-ii, forgive me. I do not know what you ask. I cannot help you, much as I would willingly do so if I could."

He smiled gently, shook his head and shrugged. He held out his hand to her and she took it, staring down at it as her now silent tears fell, splashing down onto the back of his hand and his fingers.

"I wish you could tell me what ails you, Pen-ii. I am sorry. Truly I am."

She looked up at him once more. For the first time, and she did not quite know why, she believed him. She did not understand him but she believed that he was not maliciously deceiving her in some way. His tone, the way he was looking at her showed his sincerity, his kindness and concern. It made her weep even more since it threw up more questions than it answered.

She shook her head, and a sob escaped her throat as she covered her face with her hands and wept. Wept bitterly and long. Wept so that her shoulders shuddered and shook with the frustration, anger, confusion and distress running through her.

Halbarad knelt forward and held her, not knowing what else to do, till he felt her passion subside a little. He leant back, looking down at her as she calmed. She did not look at him. The occasional tear still fell but she was not sobbing anymore.

"Can we continue, do you think?" he asked gently, knowing she would not understand him but hoping she might guess his meaning.

She did. She nodded. But still she did not look at him.

He stood and held out his hand for her to help her up from the meadowgrass. He walked beside her back to his horse grazing by the roadside and waiting for their return. He glanced at her every now and then. Her face was a picture of misery: the brows furrowed, the tears wetting her cheeks and a look of absolute dejection on her face. He shook his head, climbed back in the saddle and helped her up behind him so they could set off once more.

As his horse cantered along the East-West road, Penny felt her heart in her boots. 'Well at least I don't have to worry about Mum anymore,' she was thinking. 'She's probably brought me chocolates and fruit and flowers.' She could feel her throat tightening once more.

It was still possible this was some weird roleplaying place but she doubted it now. No. She knew she was, in fact, insane. She was hallucinating. This wasn't real. None of it was. She was lying in some hospital bed, drugged up to the eyeballs with her mother weeping by her bedside and her brother scoffing all the grapes.

This impression was not lessened by the approach of a huge marsh to the North of the road in the afternoon. Penny saw it, sobbed once more and turned her face away.

It would take millions to create this place. PJ only managed it with the millions of Hollywood at his disposal and several years of planning. How could someone 'create' chains of hills and barrows, entire swamps, to an exact replica of Eriador? How was it possible that someone was rich enough and insane enough to do such a thing, could then find enough people to roleplay the characters, AND keep the entire thing under wraps for years and years?

It wasn't, of course. It wasn't possible at all. She MUST have been crazy to have even considered the possibility.

And if some multi-millionaire hadn't done it then a production company for a reality TV show hadn't done it either.

So that left just one option: she was stark, staring bonkers.

Halbarad turned off the road into the shelter of a nearby copse. He started a fire and then got out some bread, cheese and cold meat from his pack. He offered some to Penny but she wouldn't eat. He insisted, trying to talk to her gently but she shook her head, scowling at him when he pushed her.

"I don't want any, alright!"

He nodded apologetically and ate.

As he lit a pipe he watched her, hugging her knees and staring into the fire. Something had happened. He did not know what but she was different. He was not sure if he preferred this quiet, sullen Pen-ii or the old, mad, firey one. She was clearly very, very unhappy about something. Not angry anymore. Clearly there had been something before that she had blamed him for: he had sensed her rage and scorn, and that it had been directed at him in the main. Perhaps she had realised he had, in truth, done nothing to warrant it? Was that what had happened? She still felt someone was to blame but was at a loss as to whom now?

Halbarad guessed very near the mark though he little knew it.

He had bought a second blanket off Butterbur and gave her that with the bedroll. She actually seemed to offer him the bedroll and he was stunned that she did so. This really was not the Pen-ii he had got to know the past few days.

He shook his head firmly and indicated his cloak. She shrugged, clearly not bothered one way or the other. As he lay down next to the fire opposite to her, with her also facing the fire and still clearly distracted in her thoughts, he watched her. He would not sleep much that night, and only lightly, wary as he was in such times, but he was well aware through the night that she slept little also. Something was troubling her that was clear.

In the morning, Penny was presented with the 'relievement' issue once more. Peeing was not a problem but this was the first time in the wild for anything else. Whatever happened it would have to be better than the horrors of the latrine.

As she munched her dried fruit and bread, which Halbarad had forced on her though she still was not hungry, she considered. She remembered how fussy he had been about burying the vomit and the rabbit pieces... She nearly put down her food at the memory but quickly pushed the pictures out of her mind. How was she going to dig a hole for herself?

He had gone wandering off early that morning, she had noticed. No doubt he had thought her asleep but she had been awake since dawn. She had watched him disappear into the trees, stooping every now and then to cut a leaf here or there. She had noted it was large leaves he was cutting and, as she lost sight of him, he had kept his knife in his hand. When he had returned some time later, leafless, he had been cleaning earth off his knife. Why did she suspect that he had been satisfying nature's call? And if so... she needed his knife.

Given his obvious attachment to the thing, though, this was going to be interesting. She had other things on her mind, at the moment, it was true, but even so she didn't want to upset him because, frankly, he scared her silly when he was pissed off. Even so, needs must.

And she needed.

Desperately.

If she had not been so distracted she would have done something about it last night except she did not think about it till she was already laid down to sleep and then was too scared of the dark to go wandering off into the trees by herself that late at night. So now it was a 'Sod All Consequences' situation.

She gritted her teeth, brushed the last of the crumbs from her hands. This was going to be SO embarrassing. That's even if he understood her. She was not looking forward to this.

"Halbarad?"

He looked at her, smiling gently.

"Umm.. well.. your knife, please."

She pointed at it. He looked down at himself, then back at her, clearly mystified as to what she was pointing at.

"Your knife?" she repeated and now stepped forward to crouch by him and she touched the knife in its leather pouch. He looked at what she was pointing at and then back at her with a puzzled expression on his face. She held out her hand to him.

"Please?"

Halbarad was perplexed. Why did she want his knife? He was not sure about this. Not sure at all. For all he knew she could have been leading him a merry dance these last few days. Despite what he instinctively felt in his gut about this woman - that she may be mad or stupid but not dangerous – he was still wary. It was his nature and his upbringing. It was in his very blood as a Ranger and a warrior. He smiled gently but shook his head firmly.

"No, Pen-ii. I am sorry I cannot allow you to arm yourself, even if it were for innocuous reasons. I do not know you or your story well enough. Forgive me but no."

Her eyes narrowed. Bloody typical. He was going to make her beg or get explicit and she was not prepared to do either. Given the psychological state she was in she was not in the mood for buggering about either.

"Halbarad!" she snarled, "Don't be even more of an arsewipe than you already are. Just give me the knife, goddammit!"

He laughed softly, seeing she was getting angry, but still remained firm and shook his head.

She remained crouched beside him seething. She let her head drop forward as she breathed hard through her nose. She murmured, "You little shit. You stupid, ignorant, insensitive pig!" She looked at him. "Fine. Thank you. Thank you SO bloody much. I'll just go and dig with my bare bloody hands, then, shall I? Great. Just great."

So saying she stood, turned and marched off into the trees, swearing and grumbling to herself as she went.

Halbarad suddenly suspected what she had wanted the knife for. He could feel himself flushing a little. He should have realised.

He watched her as she stopped now, looking to either side for suitable leaves to pick. She thought she had gone far enough so he couldn't see her, but he could in fact see her well enough. Could see her pick a leaf that she really didn't want to be using where he thought she was about to use it.

"Pen-ii!" He jumped to his feet.

He jogged over to her. She was blushing furiously and was clearly very annoyed at him having come over to her.

"What!" she snapped.

He grinned apologetically and pointed at the leaves. He then took them from her and sorted through them and picked out two, picked from the same plant, and a paler colour than the others and more oval than round. He held them up to her and shook his head and made a face.

"Ow!" he said.

That was clear enough. He saw her blush deepen to a vivid scarlet. He tried to be as tactful as he could.

"These ones are fine," he said, handing them back to her.

Then he took her by the shoulder to turn her slightly and then he crouched down to point at a plant growing beside them. He held on to a leaf and showed it to her. "These ones you will find easily enough. These are the ones to pick."

He smiled at her, raising his eyebrows to see if she had understood. She was still crimson but nodded and murmured something very quietly which he presumed, rightly, was her thanks. He nodded, stood and was about to turn back to the clearing when he unsheathed his knife and handed it to her, hilt forward. She smiled.

"Thank you," she murmured.

"Just be careful," he said, nodding. He pointed at the blade and sucked air over his teeth as he said, "Sharp. Ow!" She nodded.

Halbarad went back to the clearing to give her some privacy.

When she returned at last she handed him the knife, the worst of the dirt wiped off. As she rolled up the bedroll and blanket he cleaned it and put it back in its sheath. In a way he was pleased. She had proved herself trustworthy with a weapon. For this time, at least. He nodded to himself. Good. Very good.

Soon enough they were heading off once more. Within an hour Penny was staring ahead to an ever nearing line of hills running North away from the road. The last hill, nearest the road, which swung in a huge loop round its base, had ruins on its top.

Penny was shaking her head, tears in her eyes. How was it possible that the geography could be so exact? Yet it had to be fake. She could feel herself on the verge of tears again, desperate at the thought that she may actually be crazy and imagining all this. And yet... it was so vivid. So real. So 'real' in the sense of things you couldn't imagine: the smells, the sounds, the reactions of those she had met so far. How could she imagine the cuts on her feet or her thumb? The freezing cold of the water as she had washed the clothes? The tastes of the food she had eaten? How could she hallucinate in REAL TIME and in such vivid detail? She could feel the panic rise within her.

They were nearing the hill, riding past its base. As they did so, Halbarad, looking at the verges by the roadside, stopped. He got down from the horse. He went some distance into the grass on either side, stopping every now and then and crouching occasionally to inspect the ground.

A man had been here. A man and some hobbits (he could not tell the number) and a pony, though the marks were very faint and near two weeks old. They had crossed the road here. He smiled, grimly. However, he could also see other hoof marks, horses' hooves, in the ground round about. More than one. He did not like that at all.

As he came back to his horse his face was grim and he did not speak as he climbed back in the saddle.

He was about to spur his horse when Penny tapped him on the shoulder. He turned his head to her. She could see he was suddenly looking very serious. She, with a sinking feeling, realised she knew why. She pointed at the hill and the remains of long ruined walls on its height.

"Amon Sûl?" she asked, dreading yet knowing what the reply was going to be.

Halbarad nodded, unable to keep the astonishment from his face. He saw her just nod sadly, almost wearily, as if she had known and it troubled her to learn she was correct. He turned back as the horse moved forward. He had learnt some while back that her knowledge was greater than had at first seemed, yet he could not help himself but feel surprised every time something new came from her lips like this.

The rest of the day passed easily enough. Penny was getting very sore from the riding and was grateful when at last they stopped. Halbarad could see she was in pain but there he was little he could do for her. She would get used to it eventually. He would have to remember to seat her on the blanket, folded beneath her, tomorrow to ease things a little for her.

Penny accepted some bread and cheese, but only a little. She still had no appetite. She was still deep in thought and was now just chasing herself round and round in circles. She had to be imagining this. She had to be. It had gone way beyond a joke, way beyond all reasonable explanation. She had seen the distant line of mountains stretching clear across their path and getting ever nearer. She guessed now where they were headed, given his mention of Elrond to her. She shook her head.

"This is insane. This is... this is just ridiculous."

It was all she could say to herself, over and over again.

Two more days' travel passed. They spoke little. Both were lost in thought: Halbarad on how Aragorn was faring; Penny on what on earth was going on. Penny was becoming more and more depressed, and obviously so. Halbarad was worried by her demeanour. She was eating next to nothing. She had not asked for his knife again since that day after they left Bree, but considering he was near forcing her to eat he was hardly surprised. He shook his head that night, watching her as she slept fitfully and with bad dreams yet again. There was little he could do for her. He knew it, but it distressed him to see her, to see anyone, like this. He didn't feel helpless very often and it irked him greatly.

The following morning they reached the bridge over the Hoarwell. Again Halbarad stopped the horse and examined the ground round about. He was both pleased and concerned by what he found.

As he turned to the horse, though, he saw Penny's face. All the colour had drained from it and she was ashen. He came to her quickly, looking up at her and saying her name.

She did not hear him. She was staring at the bridge. It had three arches and was clearly ancient. She slid out of the saddle, not noticing the blanket slip to the ground. She came to the bridge and held out on hand against one of the low walls that ran on either side of it.

Halbarad watched, concerned by her behaviour, as she ran her fingers along the stonework. She was murmuring to herself, shaking her head. He could see her hands were shaking.

She looked at him now, tears in her eyes. Even as she did so she hit her hand against the wall. Hard. And again. Then once more.

She was about to do it a fourth time when he reached her, grabbing her hand and stopping her. He looked into her eyes, the worry and bewilderment clear within his gaze, as he held her hand. She pulled it from his grasp and looked at the damage she had caused herself. She was cut, bleeding. She roughly fingered the cuts and cried out as she did so. Halbarad had no idea what she was doing or why. She was looking around her, taking in her surroundings. He could see she was gasping, swallowing air, as if she couldn't breathe. He saw her wobble as her knees buckled and he caught her. She sank to the floor with a groan and quickly he crouched beside her.

"Pen-ii? Please! Whatever is the matter? Eru, why can't you understand me! Pen-ii, what has got into you?"

She looked at him, tears on her cheeks and a sad smile on her face.

"Eru. Yes indeed. He is about the only one who could help me or explain this right now." Her voice sounded cold and distant.

She had given up. Given up trying to understand. In this moment she felt all the fight leave her. She could cope with no more of this. It had broken her at last. She had hurt herself. It was as clear as day: she was cut and bleeding. This bridge, its stonework, was _real_. It had to be. There was no way this was an illusion. And yet... how could it be anything but? She shook her head. She gave up. She was insane and yet she couldn't be.

She sighed and smiled at Halbarad once more. "Halbarad, old chum, it just ain't fucking funny anymore, that's all." She almost laughed. Though it would have been a laugh of bitterness and resignation.

She meekly let him lead her down beside the bridge to the river where he bathed her hand for her. Then he smeared his infamous balm into the cuts and bandaged it. All the time he spoke to her gently, trying to keep her calm.

He was very concerned now. Very. He just hoped Elrond might be able to do something for her. They would not be long on the road now and, from what he could make out, Aragorn and his companions had made it this far at least, which was good to know, even if they did have company close behind them.

They rode on. Woods were now to the North of the road. Penny was not cheered by seeing the ridges and hills in that direction and the ruins of walls and towers upon them. She was not lifted in her heart to think that she was riding past the woods where she might find Bilbo's trolls.

The road wound round hills, taking them in and out of woods and trees. Eventually they made camp, once more taking advantage of cover under the trees. Halbarad treated her hand with some athelas.

She watched him as he worked, tying her bandages secure. It was the one thing she had absolutely refused to think about, even though it was coming back again and again and more frequently in her brain: if this wasn't a role-playing scenario, then who was he? Who the bloody hell WAS he? Her brain could only come up with one answer and she wouldn't even consider THAT. If she accepted that then she knew she was lost, knew she might as well give up on ever being sane ever again. Yet she kept coming back to it time and again.

As Halbarad finished tying off the ends of her bandage he stiffened suddenly as if listening. Penny opened her mouth to ask him what was going on but he held his hand up to her to silence her without even looking at her. He stood slowly, drawing his sword as he did so. He started moving towards the direction of the road and, again not looking round, untied his knife in its sheath and threw it at Penny. She picked it up, looking questioningly at him as he glanced at her. He put his finger to his lips and motioned that he was moving away. He gestured her to move back, away from the fire, and under the cover of the trees. She did so, watching him move quietly to the edge of the clearing. He was making her very nervous.

Then she could hear it: a horse's hooves on the road. Then the sound stopped.

She looked up to see Halbarad had disappeared, no doubt off to see who it might be.

There was a silence. Penny strained to listen.

Then... did she imagine it?.. talking? Laughter. It was getting louder. One voice was Halbarad's. The other... the other was... it was... well, it was male, that was for sure, but there was something about it. Something Penny had never ever heard before. She couldn't describe it or think what it was, but it was as if it was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard.

"This is getting really bloody weird," she muttered to herself.

She could see a movement in the shadows on the edge of the clearing. Halbarad stepped forward, looking in her direction and ... smiling?

It was then that something happened that turned her world completely upside down, already in turmoil and collapsing around her as it was.


	8. Reality Bites

**Chapter 8** - _"Reality Bites"_

Penny couldn't breathe. Again. This kept happening to her, it was true, but this time it was serious. Really serious. Really, really, really serious. Her brain just would not process this. Could not. Point blank refused.

She stared at the figure who had stepped into the clearing alongside Halbarad. There was no WAY this was someone roleplaying or acting. It was absolutely impossible that any human being could look like that.

He was beautiful. Stunning. Magnificent in a way she could never have even dreamt. No man could ever look like that. Ever! She could never dream something up like that. Ever! His long black hair flowed behind him, his eyes kind and bright in the firelight, his pointed ears just visible through his locks. His skin was pale to the point of translucency, near glowing almost in its whiteness.

"Oh. My. God." she whispered.

She shook her head, slowly, backing away slightly from the two who had been moving towards her but were now standing still and staring at her with alarm and concern.

It is true not everyone who had never seen an elf before took it well the first time they finally did so, but this was an extreme reaction, surely? Her face was absolutely white. She was shaking and a sweat had broken out on her forehead. She was staring from one to the other and back again, her gaze desperate with incomprehension and panic.

"Pen-ii?" Halbarad said gently.

He had warned Elladan that she was foreign and very odd. That was all he had had time to tell him. He held out one hand to stop Elladan from moving any further forward. Not that he needed to. Elladan had taken one look at her face and could see she was in shock on seeing him. He was standing absolutely still, allowing it to sink in for her.

She was muttering, murmuring to herself, shaking her head and glancing at Elladan. She closed her eyes then looked at Halbarad, clearly unable to process what she was seeing. Halbarad moved gently towards her.

"Pen-ii? This is a friend of mine. This is.."

He got no further.

Elladan leapt forward to catch her before she hit the ground.

When she came to she was lying on the bedroll next to the fire under the blanket. On the other side of the fire the elf and man were in quiet conversation. Halbarad was talking earnestly, gesturing in her direction every now and then. She guessed he was talking about her. Given the alternation between grins and concern on Elladan's face she also guessed Halbarad was giving an account of her behaviour with him thus far.

She sat up. They turned and, seeing she was conscious once more, they smiled. Halbarad got up and came over to her. He crouched beside her with a flask in his hand. It was silver, with intricate carvings and inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

He was about to pour something from it when Penny reached out for it, her face filled with astonishment. Halbarad, having only got as far as removing the cup that fitted on top and not the stopper, let her take it. There was a woodland scene engraved on both sides showing birds, deer, and rabbits all beside a stream and under the shade of trees. All around the flask were engraved leaves and tendrils so the entire surface was covered. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She could see lettering on it. She felt tears in her eyes.

"Tengwar," she murmured.

Halbarad and Elladan exchanged a glance and Elladan raised an eyebrow.

She looked up at Halbarad as a tear rolled down her cheek. She knew who he was now. He couldn't be anyone else. She couldn't fight this any longer. She suspected she was still mad, but ... but ..

She looked over at Elladan once more.

There was no way on earth she could hallucinate something like him. He was beyond imagination.

Halbarad had gently taken back the flask from her and, removing the stopper, poured some clear liquid, which she took to be water, into the cup. He handed it to her. She drank, nodding in thanks.

It had no flavour, but she knew. As soon as she felt the warmth spread through her, her spirits lift, and her head clear more than it had done since she had first woken in the wet grass several days before, she knew what it was. She felt a sob catch in her throat.

Miruvor. What else could it be?

She remembered her hand, the feel of the bridge's stonework under her fingers. She reached for her bandage and stuck her fingers into the cut underneath them. She winced. No. She could not be hallucinating: that was real pain alright. She... Oh, God. This was... It was just too... How? It was not possible.. It was..

She could not get a grip on this. Her mind was whirling as the logic part of her brain refused to accept what every other part of it was screaming at it.

"This is a friend of mine, Pen-ii. A good and dear friend." Halbarad was talking gently and gesturing to Elladan. "This is Elladan. His name is Elladan."

Penny, nodding and a tear now tracing a line down her face, stared at Elladan as he inclined his head towards her in greeting. She was barely maintaining a grip on her sanity.

"Of course it is. Elladan."

She let out a short sound: half snort, half laugh as if in resignation. It was not directed at them, though. Halbarad could see that.

"Elladan. Son of Elrond and Celebrian. Brother to Arwen and Elrohir," she said quietly. "Of course it is. Who else would it be?" She did not notice the gasps from the two males, or the look they exchanged between each other.

"WHAT did she just say?"

"It no longer surprises me. She knows much and yet seems to know nothing at all. It is all very strange. It is why I brought her with me."

She was struggling to rise now. Halbarad helped her up and she held on to his arm since she was still shaky. She then, to the surprise of both the elf and man, bowed as best she could towards Elladan.

"Mae govannen, hir nin," she said quietly. Then she sat down again.

Elladan grinned. "Mae govannen, hiril nin," he replied.

"So, Pen-ii, you speak Sindarin? Halbarad said you did not understand anything he said to you before. Were you playing with my friend perhaps?"

It was clear, though, that she did not comprehend him. Elladan exchanged another glance with Halbarad who had come to return his flask to him. He could see why Halbarad had brought her, especially from what he had told him just now. Elladan watched as Penny settled herself on the bedroll, hugging her knees. She was muttering to herself once more, shaking her head and... yes... seemed almost on the point of laughing.

As far as Penny was concerned, this was... well, there _was_ no word for what this was. Penny felt suddenly as if everything were unreal yet she could feel the heat from the fire, the pain from her hand, the warmth of the miruvor running through her.

She glanced up at the two males and gave a snort of laughter. Elladan and Halbarad! Perhaps she was mad. Even so, she knew for certain this was one of two things now: hallucination or... or...

She could not say it to herself, but she knew. She wouldn't admit it, but she knew. Her heart was thumping. She could feel fear and excitement within her. However, as she watched them, talking quietly as Halbarad prepared his pipe, she realised there was something she needed to do.

She got up and came over to them slowly. They looked up as she drew near them, coming to kneel beside Elladan. She looked nervously at Halbarad, then Elladan, then Halbarad again.

"I think she may wish to check that you are real," Halbarad smirked. "It's clear she has never seen one of the Eldar before."

Elladan nodded and smiled encouragingly at Penny. "It's perfectly alright, Pen-ii. I am absolutely real I assure you and I will not bite."

She tentatively reached out a hand to him. He sat still, smiling. She touched the hand which was nearest to her and which was resting on his knee. Encouraged, realising he wasn't stopping her, she brought her other hand forward and held his hand with both hers, turning it over, stroking the soft skin - like a child's in its softness - and looking at the near luminescence of the whiteness of it.

Not fake. Couldn't be. The light within the skin, the feel of it.

She looked up at him and saw the grey eyes twinkling at her. She felt her throat tightening, her chest heaving, as her brain finally accepted this, however insane it seemed. She let go of his hand and sobbed.

Elladan looked at Halbarad as Penny completely broke down next to him. Halbarad shrugged and shook his head sadly.

"She has been like this the past few days. I do not know what to make of it."

Elladan shifted himself so he was crouching beside her, one hand on her shoulder.

"What ails you, my lady? Is it really so distressing to meet one of my kind?"

Penny realised they would not understand her behaviour. She realised in that instant how badly she had behaved with Halbarad, how outlandish what she had done must have seemed to him. Whether this was real or the product of her fevered brain, there was no way how she had acted would have been appropriate. She raised her head and looked at Halbarad watching her, his face orange in the fire's glow.

"Halbarad, I... I..."

He looked at her kindly, knotting his brows together as he waited for her to say whatever it was she wanted to tell him. 'Not that I will understand her, of course,' he thought.

She was searching for something in her head. Something she had read, she knew. She just prayed that whoever had written it had actually researched their elvish first. It was on the tip of her tongue. Then she had it. She looked at him.

"Halbarad, goheno," she said slowly and hesitantly.

The astonishment in Halbarad's face told her she had got it right. Or right enough that he had understood her. She just prayed she had said what she wanted to say not something obscene or bizarre.

He was smiling now, shaking his head gently. "Ai, Pen-ii."

What had she meant, he wondered? Was she asking forgiveness for her behaviour with him? For fainting? He had no idea. That she had said 'goheno' not 'goheno nin' did tell him that, even if she knew Sindarin, she was far from fluent. Still, it was a start. Why had she not responded to his use of Sindarin with her before, though?

Penny could feel them watching her, concerned, no doubt. She really wanted to be alone, in all honesty. She needed time to process what her brain was now shouting at her. She suddenly felt very, very alone and very, very frightened. The more she considered this, the more scared she became. How had this happened? More importantly, how was this real? How was she here, somewhere that didn't exist, had never existed? It was a book! A bloody book! Tolkien had made the entire thing up. Brilliant, detailed, but entirely invented. She could feel the panic rising once more.

Halbarad could see it in her face again. Could see her breathing begin to quicken and her brow furrow as if she was battling with something within herself.

"Pen-ii?" he said, gently.

She looked at him, shook her head, standing and shaking Elladan's hand from her shoulder. She looked from one to the other.

"I'm.. I'm alright. I.. I just need some time to think... I ..." She shook her head and muttered to herself, "This can't be happening. This is fucking insane." She looked at them both. "You're not real. You can't be. You don't exist! How can you be here? How can I be here? What IS this!"

She stopped, her mouth opening and closing as she struggled to even begin to put into words her shock. She held up her hands in their direction as if to say 'I cannot deal with this right now' and turned her back, walking over to the edge of the clearing and standing there, one hand against a tree trunk, breathing heavily and staring out into the darkness. Elladan had stood to go over to her but Halbarad stopped him.

"Leave her. So long as she is not running or shouting I think we are safe enough. There is something going on, though precisely what I cannot fathom, and I think she needs answers. She is frustrated she cannot get them from me. I am hoping your father may provide them for her."

"But how, if she cannot speak the language?"

"We do not know she cannot. She has shown some knowledge of Sindarin just now. The first she has shown since I took her into my company."

"True, though, like you, I suspect she knows little of the language. You were right to bring her, though, especially given recent events. You have heard, no doubt... Halbarad! If you are going to smoke that thing then move to the other side of the fire at least!" Elladan held his hand to his nose with a look of disgust. Halbarad laughed and moved around so he was opposite his friend.

The two then moved on to more serious matters. Elladan explained that he, with Glorfindel and others, had been sent to find the hobbits, given the news Elrond had received. Halbarad told him of the tracks he had found, and the news he had from Bree, showing they were in Aragorn's care though the Riders were close behind them. He was concerned that there had been no word from Gandalf. That was not like him. Not like him at all.

Penny, meanwhile, was still in shock. This could not be happening. Yet it was. She had to be crazy. Yet she could not dream up real bridges, pain, or Elladan.

She glanced behind her at the fire. She could see Halbarad had moved to the opposite side of the fire from the elf. She watched Elladan as they talked. My God, he was beautiful. A sudden thought flicked through her head. 'I'm a bloody Mary Sue!' She giggled. Oh the irony! How bloody ridiculous was this? She giggled again. The two at the fire glanced up at her. She held up her hand at them.

"Sorry." She coughed, trying to keep her laughter under control. "Don't mind me. Carry on." She turned away.

Halbarad turned back to his friend and was about to speak when he turned to look at her once more. Her shoulders were shaking. He sighed and shook his head.

"You see now why I suspect she is, in fact, mad?"

"Ah, but my friend she _is_ a female," Elladan grinned. "And, what is more, a _mortal_ female. A deadly combination, frankly, and one I could never hope to understand. However if, as her fellow mortal, you consider her behaviour odd, then I suppose it must be."

Halbarad shook his head and chuckled.

Eventually Penny came and joined them at the fire once more. She was still in partial disbelief – expecting herself to come to in a hospital bed at any moment to find her brother polishing off the last chocolate and her mother sitting in a pile of tear-stained tissues – but there was little she could do about it. She would carry on and her brain would have process it or not as it saw fit. She noticed they stopped speaking as she sat with them.

"Charming," she muttered. She looked at them. "Please don't stop on my account! It's not like I can understand a bloody word, anyway!"

Elladan raised an eyebrow.

"Are we being scolded?" he asked Halbarad.

Halbarad hadn't even looked at her, merely sucked at his pipe.

"Quite probably. It happens a lot," he said indifferently.

"Why are we being scolded, may we ask?"

"Eru alone knows!" Halbarad sighed.

Eventually Penny settled down underneath the blanket once more. Since Halbarad had finished his pipe, he and Elladan had moved away from the fire and were talking in quiet whispers. It was clear much of what they said was serious, but then it obviously turned to lighter things since they were both chuckling occasionally.

Penny's mind was still racing. Eventually she slept, but fitfully. She woke often and would find Elladan always sitting, eyes open, watching the fire. Once she woke to find Halbarad awake now and standing, leaning up against a tree while Elladan was lying down, turned away from her, on the opposite side of the fire.

A voice woke her. She opened her eyes to see Halbarad crouched beside her.

"Time to rise, Pen-ii."

She nodded, sitting up and stretching. Her back seemed permanently stiff and sore: from riding all day and sleeping on hard earth at night.

The bread had finished the day before, and had been a little stale even then, so she presumed it would be just dried fruit this morning. Halbarad, however got out the oaty cake thing from his pack that he had given her the first morning. Her mouth dropped as she suddenly realised what it was.

"Lembas!"

Again a look between Elladan and Halbarad.

"How can she know of lembas and yet never have seen...?"

Halbarad cut him off with a hand.

"Don't even try and work it out, Elladan. Nothing she says or does makes any sense at all. I can promise you that." He turned to Penny, "Yes. It is lembas. Did you not realise that first morning when I gave you some?"

Obviously not judging from the near reverential way she now took the piece he was offering her and turned it over and over in her hands in clear wonder. Elladan was watching her, thoroughly bemused. Halbarad noticed with some amusement that, contrary to the last time when she had near stuffed the entire piece in her mouth in one go and had clearly been annoyed when he did not give her any more, this time she ate it as slowly as possible and taking only small bites at a time. It was as if she was trying to make the experience last as long as possible. He shook his head.

As she took a swig from the water-sac she noticed Elladan was combing his hair.

'I wonder,' she thought. 'Would it be VERY rude to ask an elf if you could borrow their comb?'

Probably.

She kept her eyes fixed on him in the hope he might look up. He didn't.

Halbarad could see her staring at Elladan, though, and guessed what was going through her mind. 'This could be interesting,' he thought. He didn't say anything. He readied his horse, rolling up the bedroll and blanket, keeping one eye on the pair and wondering how this would turn out.

At last Elladan, having finished, looked up and caught Penny's eye.

"Yes?" he asked.

It was clear she wanted something. She smiled. Sweetly. Well, as sweet as a not overly-attractive mortal, dirty and sweat-stained from travel, could look, he supposed. She was trying, at least, he had to give her that much.

He raised a questioning eyebrow at her. She was saying something, keeping her tone light and gentle, hesitant almost. She was pointing at him. No. Not at him. At something on him? She stroked her hair and made a face that told him she was embarrassed that she looked such a mess. And she did look a mess, it was true. She pointed at him again and then touched her hair once more.

'My comb! She wants to use MY comb!' he thought.

He turned to Halbarad, "Didn't you buy her a comb at the inn!"

Halbarad looked stunned. "You have to be jesting, Elladan! I bought her shoes and a dress. I paid for her board and lodging. A comb is a non-essential item." He held his hand up as Elladan started to interrupt, "Yes it IS, Elladan. Though I know you and every other eldar would dispute that fact, but nonetheless 'fact' it is. No. I did NOT buy her a comb!" He turned back to his horse, muttering, "Buy her a comb. The very idea!"

Elladan shook his head in disbelief. Halbarad could be insufferable at times. Now HE was obliged, in honour and kindness, to let a mortal woman who clearly hadn't bathed in several days, use his comb. He sighed in irritation. Reluctantly he stood, came over to Penny and handed the comb to her.

He tried to look as comfortable with this and as pleasant as possible. Penny noticed the tension in his jaw, though, and wondered if she had committed some terrible faux-pas. Whatever exchange had just gone on between Elladan and Halbarad just now it had clearly concerned both her and the comb and had irritated both of them.

She stared at the comb, wondering if she should use it. She looked up at Elladan to find he wasn't looking at her but was striding off into the trees, his back stiff with annoyance. She looked at Halbarad who had turned once more and, seeing her hesitancy, nodded and gestured for her to go ahead. She did.

Elladan finally returned, took back his comb and then, much to her annoyance and embarrassment, washed it thoroughly from his water-sac before putting it in his tunic. Her eyes narrowed and she opened her mouth to say something when she caught Halbarad looking at her sternly. She shut her mouth again and stomped off to relieve herself before they started off. So bloody RUDE!

Elladan, bareback on a beautiful gray stallion, came with them to the road and then said his farewells. He still had a job to do. He was comforted to know that Aragorn had found the hobbits, but even so he would see if he could find their trail and follow them to Rivendell by routes other than the road.

As Elladan headed off into the trees he called out "Navaer" over his shoulder. Penny as well as Halbarad returned the farewell. Halbarad grinned to himself as he heard her and started the horse moving once more.

As they followed the road through the hills and woods in silence, Penny's mind turned over the implications of what she really could not deny now. "This is Middle Earth," she kept muttering, somehow hoping that if she said it often enough it would sound less insane.

It didn't. But she kept trying.

It suddenly occurred to her that she was sitting on a horse with her arms round Halbarad. THE Halbarad. She felt herself go a little dizzy at the thought. She felt scared and overwhelmed by it. She decided it was best not to think about it. She stared fixedly at the greenery as it went by. She tried to see if she could name any plants or trees she saw: anything to keep her mind from snapping at the thought that she was sat on a horse with a fictional character, had seen and touched a real life elf, and was possibly following in the footsteps of...

"Oh God!"

Her heart skipped a beat and she could feel her palms suddenly cold and wet against Halbarad's tunic.

If this was 'real'. She shook her head. No. If this was REAL... then...

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. Bill Ferny. Bill Ferny had a broken nose. Halbarad had seen tracks, clearly, on both sides of the road below Weathertop. Oh... oh shit. Suddenly she understood his fear and alarm at her mention of Nazgul. She groaned into his back.

"This can't be happening. This is..."

She stopped herself. She was about to say it was insane. Again. She kept saying that. She kept thinking it and yet everything she experienced was telling her, insane or not, it was real. She was here. She was in Middle Earth, and even weirder, she was in the middle of the journey of the Ring.

They hardly spoke that night as they camped once more away from the road and under cover of trees. She ate a little at Halbarad's insistence, though in truth he did not need to insist since her appetite was returning a little. She could, however, feel a knot in her stomach - of nervousness and fear – that would not go away.

Halbarad could see she was still troubled, if now less hysterical and on the edge. She had a near permanent look of worry on her face. That, and fear in her eyes. If she caught his gaze, she would soften into a smile, though.

As he smoked after they had eaten she suddenly spoke quietly. She pointed at him.

"You. Dúnedan?"

He smiled and nodded.

She spread her arms about her, "This. Eriador? Arnor?"

He nodded again, his smile turning into a grin.

She pointed at both of them and then through the trees in the direction of the mountains and the direction the road headed. "We. Imladris? Elrond?"

He nodded.

She nodded in her turn and fell silent once more, brooding over this.

Early the next morning they came to a cutting in the road. On either side the earth, red and bare, reached up to the sky steeply. Halbarad suddenly felt Penny's grasp around him tighten as she tensed. He glanced over his shoulder to find she was looking about her, murmuring. He read panic in her eyes. He stopped the horse.

"Pen-ii? What is it?"

She looked at him, shaking her head. "Halbarad. This... This is where..."

She shook her head again. No, she was being crazy.

Halbarad could see she wasn't going to tell him, or try and make him understand. He moved his animal forward once more but Penny's grip round him did not lessen. She was making him wary and he let go of the reins, letting one hand rest on his thigh instead, near his sword hilt, his arm crossed over his body.

The road burst into the autumn sun once more and Penny, her heart in her mouth, saw they were on a steep incline above a river. On the opposite side was a bare-earthed bank with a track winding up it.

"Bruinen," she breathed.

Halbarad heard her and could not help himself gasp slightly in surprise. She knew this place?

Then his attention was distracted by what he could see on the ground. He climbed down from his horse and inspected the marks.

Penny watched him, her despair and fear growing as she did so. She could see where a great flood had moved a large part of the earth and stones from the lower edges of the bank near the river. Part of the grass and plants on either side had been entirely scoured away. Halbarad was examining hoof marks in the ground that even she could make out in the soft earth.

He came back to the horse, his brow furrowed, and, pulling the reins over the horse's head, led the animal down the slope still examining the ground as he did so. When he got to the river and saw the damage and evidence of the flood his face grew grim.

"Someone tried to cross without leave," he murmured.

Then he spun round to Penny in astonishment as he heard her say something. He could see she had tears running down her face. He understood 'Aragorn', 'periannath', 'Nazgul', 'Bruinen', 'Glorfindel' and 'Asfaloth'.

How had she been able to tell that without looking at a single track! And why did she mention Glorfindel and his horse?

"How did you know that?" he asked her, his eyes wide.

She understood from his tone that he was astonished. She guessed he had only understood the names, not the full sense of what she had told him. She also guessed that he had seen the same thing in the tracks, hence his astonishment. She shook her head sadly. There was no way she could make him understand. He would think her mad even if she could... but then she suspected she was mad already, so would his opinion make any difference?

Halbarad climbed back on his horse slowly and he eyed her with some suspicion as he did so. He shook his head. Odd. Very odd.

He urged his horse forward into the water and so entered the realm of Elrond Halfelven and the Last Homely House.

* * *

_Mae govannen_ - well met

_Hir nin_ - my lord

_Hiril nin_ - my lady

_Goheno nin_ - forgive me

_Navaer_ - farewell


	9. Curiouser and Curiouser

Well it was either two short chapters or one long one. Hope you will forgive me but I've posted it as one long(ish) one. grin Be warned – it's getting more serious now.

* * *

**Chapter 9** _- "Curiouser and Curiouser"_

The ground rose steeply for a mile or two until, at last, they came to a ridge below which was spread a plain. Penny could see how close they were to the mountains now. Her heart trembled. She knew this scene. She had read it so many times since she was a child: Bilbo and the dwarves being led by Gandalf on the first part of their journey.

She had a mixture of terror, wonder and incredulity within her still. She could not shake off the desperation she had felt at the ford born from the knowledge that she was either insane or in the middle of something terrifying. Neither possibility filled her with hope or comfort, yet they were they only two possibilities left to her and, worryingly, she really, really doubted now that she was mad.

In a strange way the constant of Halbarad, his smelly tunic and his broad, strong back was the one thing she found comforting. She let her head rest between his shoulders, the slow and silent tears wetting into the fabric, as she watched the foothills pass her by.

They travelled all day. The ground rose slowly as they climbed one hill then another. They were getting steadily higher and ever closer to the mountains, which now loomed huge and ominous ahead.

Every now and then Halbarad would slow or stop the horse completely, look around him as if checking his bearings and then spur the horse into a canter once more. Her words at the ford had perturbed him and he was reminded once more of her mention of Aragorn and his lineage back in Bree. He could feel her hold on him still tense around him, knew she was weeping every now and then. He wanted to reach Rivendell as soon as he could now. Something was not right. Not right at all.

At long last they were among trees and the ground was rising without end, it seemed to Penny. Halbarad had slowed the horse to a trot, and then to a walk and was looking from side to side as if for signs of the path.

"Just as Gandalf did," she muttered, remembering her mother reading to her late at night when she was small, over and over again.

She shook her head. This was craziness. This was... for God's sake she was at the foot of the Misty Mountains and probably about to meet Elrond himself as well as the entire Fellowship! Words failed her. She was still in shock. Her mind reeling. She was surprised by how cold and numb she felt. Her screaming and railing against her predicament had been only when she felt she had some kind of near logical story for what was happening to her, but this... THIS! She had absolutely no adequate response to this. She just wanted to curl up into a ball and hide. Forever.

Suddenly they came to the top of steep downward slope. Halbarad said something and turned his head to Penny. She looked up and realised he was pointing ahead, down into a valley. She could see twinkling lights below. She was blinded with tears once more.

Halbarad heard her sob. He shook his head and started the horse down the zigzagging path.

When they reached level ground, Penny noticed there were no laughing or singing voices above them in the trees as there had been for Bilbo and his companions. After an hour they came to the meadows on either side of the river and ahead Penny could see a bridge. Suddenly Halbarad stopped the horse and greeted someone ahead of them. Penny, peering round his shoulder, gasped.

The dark-haired elf, dressed in greens and greys, looked at her and inclined his head.

"Mae govannen, hiril nin."

She nodded. "Mae govannen." She stared. She couldn't help herself. He, too, was beautiful in a way that was utterly unimaginable. His voice was soft and lilting like honeyed wine.

"You are expected, Halbarad. And your companion. You should know Aragorn has returned safely and with his charges."

"Yes, I guessed as much at the ford."

The elf nodded. "They will tell you more, no doubt. Navaer"

"Navaer, Narion."

"Navaer," said Penny as they passed the elf by.

He inclined his head in response with a wry smile on his face as he watched the mortal woman stare at him with what was clearly astonishment and not a little fear in her eyes. She even craned her neck right round so she could keep him in sight as long as possible. Narion laughed softly as he wondered what her reaction would be within the walls of Imladris itself. He chuckled and headed off into the trees.

'And here we are. Of course. The bridge with no parapet, so narrow that...'

She couldn't help but smile then when Halbarad stopped before the bridge, got off the horse and held his hand to her to help her down. He then urged her to go first while he led the horse across the bridge behind her. He could hear her muttering to herself once more, staring about her as if in wonderment.

Ahead were more trees, nestling up against one side of the steep valley, and through them Penny could now make out buildings in the darkness, and the twinkle of lights.

Once over the bridge they mounted his horse again and trotted in their direction. Now she heard singing, laughing, and chattering. All around it seemed. She turned her head this way and that, trying to determine where it was coming from. Above her. Always above her. She could feel tears in her eyes yet again.

A wall loomed before them suddenly in which was set a huge gate, wooden but with silver inlay in the shape of two trees. As they approached they swung open and Penny could see two elves, one on either side, first pulling them back and then pushing them to allow their horse passage through. They greeted Halbarad smilingly, as if he were well known to them, and he returned their greeting. Penny was too stunned to say anything at all.

She was staring at the building ahead of her now, trying to take it in. Halbarad was slowing his animal and then stopping. He jumped down and helped Penny descend, then turned to start untying his pack. Even as he did so four or five elves seemingly appeared from nowhere to greet him and take his things from him.

Penny's stomach was a bundle of nerves, she felt dizzy, her head swimming as she stared at them. The sight of Elladan had thrown her completely but to see so many elves all together was nearly as shocking for her.

They murmured greetings to her, seeing she was unused to elves by the expression on her face, smiling gently at her. Halbarad turned as an elf took his pack and another led away his horse to see Penny white and trembling and... whimpering slightly.

She was finding all this very hard to deal with. Very. He came to her and she gripped hold of his arm. Tightly. Still staring fixedly at the elves and feeling the hysteria rising.

She wasn't sure if she was about to start crying, laughing or screaming.

"Pen-ii, do not fear," Halbarad said gently. "They will not harm you, you have my word. They are a gentle and loving people. Come, Pen-ii. Come with me."

He gently led her up the stairs, two elves coming with them. One, with his pack, was saying that Elrond had been informed of his arrival, and that chambers had been made ready for them both. Halbarad nodded.

"See she is taken care of. She does not speak our languages. Any of them. She is very nervous and frightened and unused to elves. I must see Elrond immediately. And Aragorn. Where is he?"

They were led down corridors and up stairs. Penny kept hearing snatches of chatter and song echoing to her through the hallways, muffled as if coming through several closed doors.

Penny was walking slower and slower as she looked around her in amazement. The floors were decorated with mosaics and tiles, the walls with paintings and tapestries. She wanted to stop and stare at each one. She knew she could never invent something like this in a million years. No bloody way. It couldn't be illusion or hallucination. It was truly stunning. The craftsmanship and delicate beauty of everything just astounded her. Halbarad, with some impatience, had to call her several times to catch up with them. She would apologise and hurry to them only for something else to then catch her eye. At last Halbarad stopped and turned to her.

"This elleth will take you to your chambers. I will come for you later. I have to speak to Elrond. Elrond? Lord Elrond?"

She nodded. Was he going to take her to him now? He didn't move, though, and instead looked beside her to one of the elves walking with them.

She turned to see the female elf was smiling at her kindly. She beckoned to her and began to walk down the corridor. Penny looked at Halbarad.

He could see the panic in her eyes once more. She said his name questioningly and hesitantly obviously unsure that she wanted to leave him. He smiled and nodded and gestured towards the elf.

"Go, Pen-ii. You will be well looked after I assure you."

She slowly started to follow the elf. She stopped, looked back at him, saw him smiling and gesturing for her to continue, and turned to follow the elf once more.

She didn't know why she felt so ill at ease now without him about. Ridiculous. Especially given what a pain in the backside he'd been. She stopped herself. That was hardly his fault, though, was it? How else would a warrior from six thousand years ago react to some screaming banshee from the twenty-first century?

She felt the knots in her stomach once more and shook her head. Six thousand years ago! Or more! This was utterly ridiculous. How the bloody hell did she get here? What was going on?

The elf led her up another flight of stairs and down another corridor where Penny could see a door was open and one or two elves were busy coming in and out. The elf stopped and gestured for Penny to enter. She did. Her breath caught in her throat.

There was a huge double bed between two large windows, one of which seemed to have a balcony. There was a fire lit and a tub with steam coming from it, which was clearly what the elves had been busying themselves with as she had come down the corridor.

She stood in the middle of the room and spun slowly, taking it all in. The walls were painted with woodland scenes: waterfalls, trees, flowers, vistas of valleys and hills. On one the sea could be seen in the distance and swan shaped boats ploughed the waves. It was extraordinary and wonderful.

The elf was talking to her. She turned. The elleth indicated a dress and undershift laid out on the bed. There were a pair of slippers at the foot of the bed.

"For me?" Penny pointed to herself, in some astonishment. The elf nodded. Penny gasped. "Le hannon." The elf smiled and inclined her head.

Then Penny noticed that on a chest of drawers some towels, a comb, a scrubbing brush, soap and some jars had been placed. She went over to them.

"What are these?" she asked, pointing at the jars. There were three of them.

The elf smiled. She picked up the first, the smallest of the three, and pointed at the bath. She pulled the cork out of the neck and offered it to Penny who sniffed. It was lavender. Lavender oil. The elf then pointed at the bath. Penny went over to it and realised the scent of lavender was coming from the steam.

She grinned. MUCH better than The Prancing Pony.

"And the other two?" she asked, indicating them.

She hoped. She prayed. Please let it be. Please.

The elf pointed to her hair.

Thank God. Thank you, thank you God!

"YES!" she gasped, her fist curled in triumph.

The elf laughed. She pointed at one bottle and held up one finger, then to the other and held up two fingers.

Penny nodded. THAT she understood. She grinned. "Le hannon! Le hannon, le hannon, le hannon. Le hannon SO bloody much! I can't even TELL you how much!" She said 'le hannon' once more just for good measure till the elf was giggling.

There was one item which puzzled her, though. It looked like a twig. One end had been cut, the bark or outer layer stripped away to the length of half an inch, and then the 'inside' of the twig frayed almost like a brush. Penny sniffed at it. It seemed scented. Spicey. Like cinnamon or nutmeg. She looked quizzically at the elf and held it up to her.

"What is this?"

The elf smiled and tapped her teeth.

Penny gasped, in wonder and delight. "You are joking! You mean.. Dear God! I can finally brush my teeth! Oh, thank you! Le hannon!"

The elf beamed, amused and pleased at Penny's enthusiasm. So unusual for a mortal. They normally enjoyed stinking and regarded all such things with deep suspicion.

Penny wondered how dreadful she looked. She had noticed a mirror with all the other things laid out for her but had not dared look in it yet. The elf was talking to her again, smiling, and was heading for the door.

"Wait. I'm Penny," she pointed at herself. "Penny. You?" she pointed at the elf.

The elf just smiled in incomprehension and left.

Penny sighed. Well at least she could get CLEAN! Finally! Joy of joys! Wonder of wonders! She did a little skip in the room. Only now did she venture over to the mirror and hold it up.

Oh my GOD! What did she look like! She almost forgave Elladan his behaviour over the comb. Not quite. But almost. She was filthy! Absolutely filthy. She knew she stank too. Now she could see the state of herself she felt desperately embarrassed somehow, especially given the beauty of the elves. Whatever must they have thought!

The linen to dry herself with was softer and more absorbant than had been the case in Bree. The scrubbing brush was softer also, not likely to take off layers of skin with the dirt, and in addition there was also a kind of flannel made of a rougher material than the towels. The soap was scented with rose as far as Penny could tell, and the shampoo, as well as what she presumed to be conditioner, smelt of herbs and honey. Penny beamed. She was going to THOROUGHLY enjoy this.

She bolted the door, undressed and sank back into the warm water with a sigh.

A little later, as she dressed she tried not to think about where she was, what she was doing, or who she was likely to meet in the next few days if not this very evening. She admired the dress, a pale green, in the light of the candles and lanterns ranged round the room. The slippers were made of brown suede or something similar. The dress fitted her very well, much better than the one from Bree had.

'Clearly elves don't have such big boobs,' she smirked. Again it was shaped, but not tight, and reached to the ankle.

As she towel dried her wet hair and combed it, delighted at how easily the comb slipped through her tresses now she had conditioned it, there was a knock on the door. She stood, opened it and was actually quite pleased to find the familiar face on the other side of it. A familiar face who was, at last, wearing a clean tunic rather than the ill-smelling one the back of which she had got to know so intimately over the last week.

"Halbarad!"

He grinned. It made a change for her to not be weeping or snarling at him.

"Are you ready? They have laid some food out for us if you are hungry. Then there are some people who you must meet. As a matter of urgency."

He did not know why he was telling her all this since she would not understand a word but he felt in fairness and honour he had to keep her informed.

He had been pleased to discover Gandalf here, though his news had been black indeed. He, Aragorn and Elrond had been deep in conversation with Glorfindel in Elrond's private study when he had found them all. He had given them only the barest facts of Penny but even the little he had said had intrigued and worried them all.

"She named me? And two of my titles!" Aragorn could scarcely believe it.

Halbarad nodded. "I hope she may have a message for you from someone who knows you well but my heart tells me that is not the case. She said 'Aragorn', 'Estel', 'Elessar' and then near enough in the next breath said 'Gondor' and 'Arnor'."

Aragorn shook his head and looked dark. Gandalf, sucking at his pipe, took this all in in silence.

Elrond was speaking, "And you say she had heard of Elladan and his lineage?"

Halbarad nodded, "As soon as I said his name she mentioned you, Celebrian, Arwen and Elrohir. It is all very strange."

"It is indeed," grumbled Gandalf. "A matter that must be looked into, without a doubt. An intriguing one. Most intriguing."

Halbarad turned to Glorfindel. "Tell me what part you played at the ford? With the Nine?"

There was an uneasy glance between them all. Glorfindel, with help from Aragorn, explained what had happened.

"Why?" asked Aragorn, seeing his friend's face grow stern, "What is it?"

Halbarad was shaking his head. "It is not possible." He looked at them, "I could see the tracks: hobbits, a man, a pony and horses. Many horses. I worked out that you had crossed the ford and the Nazgul had also attempted to do so and been foiled in that attempt. She did not get off the horse. She could not have known anything from the tracks since she never saw them. Yet not only did she know," he paused and looked at Glorfindel now, "She also mentioned you and Asfaloth. It was as if she knew exactly what had happened. Exactly as you have described it to me."

There was a collective gasp.

"But that's impossible! How could she have known? Even if you had been able to make out that Maura crossed the ford on a horse, you could not have been certain of its name or rider!" Aragorn was stunned.

"Exactly," Halbarad nodded. "This is the very reason I brought her with me. She knows much. Knows more than seems possible. And yet..."

"And yet she knows nothing and behaves strangely, as you said," interrupted Gandalf. "Very interesting indeed. We must meet her. Immediately."

Halbarad nodded, "Of course, Mithrandir. But we must have a bite to eat first. She is also... How shall I put it? Distressed. There is something very wrong, though I know not what. We must question her, and as soon as possible, but we must do so gently."

The others agreed.

Halbarad lead Penny down stairs and through corridors once more. This place was huge! She knew she would get hopelessly lost if left to herself. She tried to keep pace with Halbarad (who, being tall, was striding out at quite a rate through the hallways) since she was terrified that if she lost him she'd never find him again. Eventually he stopped and motioned her through a door. There was a small antechamber with a fire, a table with food laid out on it and lit torches in the wall brackets.

There was soup, bread, wine, cheese, cold meats, fruit and it was delightful. The soup was vegetable; the bread clearly freshly made; the cheese was not dissimilar to feta: a crisp salty taste and white and crumbly. The wine was fantastic!

And she needed a drink. A _large_ drink. Gin would have been better but wine would just have to do for the time being. She wondered briefly if elves made hooch, moonshine or anything similar. She could do with getting absolutely hammered right now. Might make everything so far seem FAR more sensible if she was as pissed as a fart. She'd probably be able to ignore it all much more successfully. She sighed and downed her cup in one.

Halbarad stared at her in astonishment as she then held out her cup to him asking for a second. He shook his head. "No, Pen-ii. You are about to meet Lord Elrond. This is strong stuff and you cannot meet him drunk."

She scowled at him. He had been so nice to her the last few days and now he was being his old pig-headed arsewipe self.

"Halbarad! I need a drink. I am in the maddest possible situation and you cannot even BEGIN to imagine what I am going through. If I AM going to lose my sanity I'd prefer to do it while completely blotto if you don't mind. Now give me some bloody wine!"

He shook his head.

She slammed down her cup and made a lunge to grab the bottle from him. "Give me that, you PIG!"

He narrowed his eyes at her as he pulled it out of her reach. "No!" he snarled. Then he pointedly picked up a jug of water and poured that into her cup instead.

She nearly threw it at him. Seriously considered it. It was only because she remembered he still had his sword on his belt that she stopped herself.

Halbarad saw her hand twitch towards the cup as her face twisted in anger and then her eyes flick to his sword as she drew her hand back.

'Sensible woman,' he thought to himself.

He would have had to show ENORMOUS self-restraint if she had hit him with that cup. And from such close range. She glared at him and he glowered back.

"No, Pen-ii. Elrond. You. You drunk is NOT a good idea."

She was still standing. He scowled, raising an eyebrow at her, and said threateningly, "Pen-ii...!"

She slowly lowered herself back into her seat. She wasn't going to win this, she knew.

"Who the bloody hell does he think he is! My father! Probably old enough to be, but that's not the sodding point. Bastard!"

She was grumbling and muttering to herself. Halbarad watched her as he pulled a grape or two from the bunch in front of him. He sighed and shook his head. Well, better her grumbling than thinking about hitting him in the head with a terracotta cup, he supposed.

Once they had finished eating he motioned for her to follow him once more. Once or twice they passed an elf or two in the corridors. Penny still found it all very strange and pressed herself close to Halbarad every time.

He smiled at her nervousness and let her cling onto his arm.

At last he stopped before a heavy wooden door. He knocked. Penny suddenly felt very nervous and Halbarad felt her grip on his elbow tighten. There was a muffled response from inside the room and Halbarad pushed open the door and led her in.

She followed him, tentatively, not daring to breathe at what she suspected may be in front of her.

The figure seated to one side of the desk she knew immediately to be Gandalf. It couldn't be anyone else with the long white hair and beard, the enormous eyebrows and the long grey robes. A staff was leaning against the arm of his chair.

Beside him, seated at the desk itself, was an elf leaning to one side slightly with one elbow on the desk and his hand in front of his mouth as he watched her. He had long dark hair, a circlet around his head that shone brilliantly in the firelight and jewels glinted at his throat from the collar on his tunic, which, even from here, she could see was intricately embroidered with silk and golden threads. Looking at him she immediately was reminded of Elladan. Elrond, like his son, was stunningly beautiful. His skin near shone in its paleness, and his tall frame screamed elegance and poise with an underlying strength. He looked very relaxed, very at ease, and yet she could tell those eyes were sharp in their assessment of her, watching her every move, and his face was cold and impassive. She felt even more nervous as soon as she saw him.

The third figure was a man standing and leaning against a huge bookcase that spanned the entire wall through which the doorway was cut. He had a cup in one hand and was sipping from it slowly as she walked towards them. She guessed immediately who it had to be. He looked very like Halbarad, was easily as tall as him perhaps even more so, and had the same dark hair and grey eyes. He too was watching her intently.

She felt utterly overwhelmed at the thought of exactly WHO she was in the presence of as she looked at first one, then another of the four males in the room. She had stopped, was standing absolutely still, trying not to think about it and yet unable to stop her brain shouting their names at her over and over again.

She shook her head and muttered, "Get a grip, Pen, get a bloody grip. This is weird, this is insane, but there's not a lot you can do about it. Just go with the flow, love, just go with the flow."

Her pep talk wasn't helping much she had to admit. She was losing it. She could feel it. This was mad. Madder than a seriously mad thing. So insane in fact that she could feel the giggling rising within her. She fought it. She had to. It would not go down well, she knew, if she started roaring with laughter at a Maia, a future king, and one of the most famous and noble elves in Middle Earth. But even THAT thought just made the laughter build even more.

She glanced at Halbarad. She snorted, trying to keep it in, and brought her hand to her mouth, desperately trying to keep herself under control.

Halbarad was shaking his head at her. Aragorn was looking bemused. Elrond was less than impressed and had an eyebrow raised in astonishment. But Gandalf had a soft smile on his face though he said nothing.

Halbarad, exchanging a glance with the others, had stopped to let her recover herself. He said her name quietly and eventually managed to steer her to a chair in front of the desk and gestured her to sit while he sat next to her.

She felt the laughter subsiding to be replaced once more by nerves and a desperate panic rising within her as her heart sank. She could feel herself trembling, breaking out into a cold sweat. They were going to want answers, explanations, and, frankly, she was the last person who could give them to them.

'Though, if anyone might be able to explain..,' she thought, glancing at Gandalf.

There was a moment of silence as the four regarded her for a moment, taking in her obvious fear and discomfort. They all sensed that she somehow knew them all to be important people and that that was affecting her also.

Penny felt desperately uncomfortable and stared at her knees, hoping the ground would open up and swallow her.

'Now would be a good time to wake up. Now. Wake up, Pen! Now! NOW! WAKE UP!'

She clutched her fingers into her palms, the nails digging in. No, the pain was real. She WAS here. This WAS happening.

She hadn't realised they were watching her, watching her dig her nails into her hands, watching as she muttered to herself under her breath, squeezing her eyes tight shut as if willing herself to do something. They all exchanged a glance.

Halbarad spoke, "Did I not warn you? All this behaviour started some days ago and has not lessened, except in its severity perhaps." He lifted her hand and showed them the healing cuts, "This she did to herself against the bridge. I have no idea why."

Gandalf had been staring at her intently, chewing on the end of his pipe. "She is frightened. Very frightened. Confused. Bewildered even. She is... she is lost."

Elrond nodded, "Yes, I sense that from her too."

Gandalf nodded, "But there is something else. I cannot fathom it. Not yet."

Penny shook her head and sighed. Her embarrassment at Halbarad showing them her hand and no doubt explaining what had happened was acute. They wouldn't understand. She didn't understand, for God's sake.

"I'm sorry," she said. "Really. Goheno. Goheno." She burst into tears.

"What is this? Is she mad?" asked Elrond.

Halbarad looked at him, "I have wondered exactly that on more than one occasion, my lord."

"No, I do not think she is mad," said Gandalf shaking his head. "There is a reason for all this, I can sense it. I think we just need to give her time."

"Pen-ii? Pen-ii." She looked at Halbarad as he said her name, wiping at her eyes, her nerves and confusion evident in her face. He gestured to the other three, Aragorn now having come to sit in the empty chair between Elrond and Halbarad so the five formed a circle. "Pen-ii. Let me introduce you. This is.."

Penny held up her hand to his arm and forced him to lower it. She suspected he was going to introduce her. She looked at him and shook her head.

"I know who they are, Halbarad."

He looked at her questioningly.

She stood, bowed as well as she could given how much she was trembling, and said, "Mae govannen. I am Penny. Penelope Baker. Penny. It is an honour to meet you all."

She knew they wouldn't understand her, but she felt it needed to be said. She turned to each of them, saying 'mae govannen' and their names. Then she sat down, nervously, waiting to see what would happen next.

There was a stunned silence for a few seconds.

The three she had addressed had looked startled as she said each of their names but recovered themselves very quickly, nodded and murmured their greetings in return. Then there was hurried chatter between the four males in Sindarin.

Then came the questions.

One after another from all four of them.

She did not understand any one of them. Aragorn tried talking to her in every language he knew, as did Gandalf. Nothing. Not even the various dialects of Westron they knew, not any of the languages of the East or the South, from Harad or further.

She just sat there looking more and more bewildered, more and more distressed and frustrated, till at last she cried out, "Please! I can't cope with this! No more, I beg you! I don't understand you! Can't you see that? I.. I don't... I don't bloody understand!" She collapsed, weeping, back into her chair.

It was late. She was tired and it was clear nothing further could be done that night. They had pushed her as hard as they dared for now.

After talking together briefly once more they agreed that this was enough for now. It was clear she spoke no language that they knew. That in itself was a very great mystery and more than enough to chew over for the time being.

Halbarad turned to her and spoke gently, telling her she could go to her chambers and making gestures to indicate sleeping. She got the gist of it, nodded and stood.

It was only as she did so that she spotted her PJs on Elrond's desk, pushed to one side. Halbarad had brought them to show them her strange attire when he had found her: not only strange in its design, and that a female should be wearing it, but also the material and the stitching, which was the most even and perfect stitching he, or the others, had ever seen.

She gasped, the mortification and embarrassment clear on her face to Aragorn, Elrond and Gandalf who were facing her. She snatched them from the desk and rounded on Halbarad.

"What the bloody hell is this! How DARE you! It's bad enough YOU saw me in my pyjamas, let alone showing them to every bloody male in the building! Thank God I didn't have underwear with me, otherwise no doubt you'd be waving my bras around too! It's a bloody liberty, Halbarad! NOT ON!"

She stood there, glowering at him. Aragorn and Gandalf exchanged a look and smirked. Elrond, shocked that she had behaved in such a manner in his presence, nevertheless found it amusing to see her berating Halbarad, a brave and noble man to whom no-one would normally dare speak in such a manner.

Halbarad glared at her. How DARE she speak to him like this in front of others and ones such as these!

"Pen-ii, I warned you at the inn to keep a civil tongue in your head," he growled.

She could tell he was angry, but so was she. She realised her clothes were strange to them, but that wasn't the point. She was tired and fed up and very emotional right now.

"I know I'm just some freak to you all. But.. but.. you could have asked, or done it while I was here, or something. You didn't have to just wave my pyjamas about to all and sundry, Halbarad. That's just rude." She sobbed pathetically.

Gandalf spoke, "I think you have embarrassed her. I feel she is ashamed that we have seen these clothes. Perhaps they are not meant for public show."

"Then why was she wandering about in them?" Halbarad muttered angrily.

Gandalf shook his head as he replied, "But why was she wandering about barefoot? How did she get to a place where she knows neither the customs nor the language without more damage to her feet? There are many questions. She is upset. It may be well for you to apologise."

"WHAT!" Halbarad exploded. "You have to be joking, Mithrandir!"

Gandalf remained impassive. "Not at all, Halbarad."

Halbarad looked at Gandalf; then at Elrond who shrugged his shoulders trying to stay aloof and neutral; then at Aragorn who was snorting into his cup.

"It's NOT funny," Halbarad growled.

Aragorn muttered an apology, coughed and bit his lip in an effort to control himself.

Only now, as Halbarad turned to her to apologise, did they realise that Penny had moved. She was staring at the wall opposite Elrond's desk where there hung a large tapestry that covered the entire wall. She was clearly transfixed by it and was walking towards it slowly, clutching her PJs tightly to her chest.

As she neared, she could see the detail clearly in the flickering candlelight. It was exquisite. It was a woodland scene in the centre of which stood two figures: a male and female. The female, an elf, was beautiful. Though, in truth, that word could not truly do her justice. It brought tears to Penny's eyes just to see her. She had dark hair flowing about her shoulders, her skin the palest white and round her neck was a necklace the like of which Penny had never seen. At its centre shone a single jewel whose light seemed to fill the entire picture. The male was human, also dark haired. He reminded her of both Halbarad and Aragorn, though there was something about the jaw that she had seen in both Elladan and his father, like a family resemblance. She gasped as she saw the figure was one-handed.

The four were watching her. Halbarad looked at Gandalf.

"What do you think? She recognises the figures?"

Aragorn shook his head, "How could she? Who outside of the elves or Dúnedain and one or two learned peoples in Gondor remember such tales?"

Gandalf rose and walked over to Penny. She heard his footfall and turned to him. He saw her cheeks wet with tears.

"It is beautiful. Truly."

He somehow guessed her meaning and nodded. He turned to the other three, "She weeps at its beauty."

Elrond nodded and smiled. He had placed it opposite his desk for a very good reason and delighted in taking a break from his work or reading now and then and being able to look up and study it for a while.

"Do you know who they are, my child?" Gandalf was asking her. She furrowed her brows, but he asked her again and gestured at the tapestry.

She nodded, guessing what he was asking. She pointed to the female. "This is Luthien. She is wearing the Nauglamir with the Silmaril." She did not notice the stunned intake of breath behind her from the other end of the room. "And this is Beren. Beren One-Hand."

She turned to Gandalf and, being sideways on to the other three they could all see her gesture clearly as she said 'Silmaril' and pointed to the palm of her hand and closed her hand into a fist. Then she said, 'Carcharoth' and clamped her other hand over the fist as if a mouth were biting it. Gandalf nodded, smiling, and glanced back to the others who were in shock.

Penny looked at the kindly eyes under those bushy eyebrows. A tear fell.

"Mithrandir... Do you really not understand me? I had hoped you, you of all of them, might."

He had one eyebrow raised at her. Clearly she had some hope of him, though what it was he could not guess.

She was pleading now. "Mithrandir! Please! Can't you understand me?" He smiled kindly at her but gave no answer. She sighed, the tears falling faster. "After all aren't you...?"

She hesitated and glanced to the other three. She did not know if they would know who Gandalf truly was. She suspected Elrond might, possibly Aragorn also. But she could not know for sure. She looked at Gandalf.

He was watching her closely, wondering what it was she wanted to say that she seemed worried to say in front of the others. They watched also.

She leant forward, put one hand on his shoulder and whispered in his ear. "I know you are Olorin. A Maia. Do you really not understand me?" She stood back. The shock in his face was evident, but he showed no sign of understanding her question. "You don't do you?" The tears were falling fast. "You really don't! Oh God. Oh my God! This... How? How can I even begin to explain this?"

She turned to them all now, weeping in her distress and confusion, her breath coming short and fast. "How? Tell me!"

Her words caught in her throat. She could feel her knees buckling, the room spinning, as it all overwhelmed her once again.

Halbarad, seeing her going, ran to her as Aragorn and Elrond leapt up from their chairs with a cry. Gandalf caught her just as Halbarad reached her and together they laid her gently on the floor. Halbarad looked up at Aragorn and Elrond as they came over to them.

"Do you have some understanding now? You understand both why I brought her and why I am concerned – both by her behaviour and the knowledge she shows?"

All three nodded.

Gandalf was pale, his jaw set, and his eyes dark. His voice was thick as he said, "Halbarad, I think you had better take her to her chambers. We will deal with this tomorrow."

Halbarad nodded, lifted her into his arms and, as Aragorn held the door open for him, he walked down the corridor with her.

As Aragorn closed the door and turned back into the room he saw Gandalf's expression was grim, his eyes showing his confusion and concern. Gandalf looked from Aragorn to Elrond.

"Do you know what she whispered to me just now?"

As he told them both they gasped and stared at Gandalf in disbelief.

* * *

Author's Notes:

The Arabs still use such things to clean the teeth: it's called a 'siwak' and it is in fact a kind of root.

'Maura' is Frodo's real name (in Westron).

It is not an inconceivable assumption (Gandalf being so close to Aragorn as well as Aragorn having grown up in Rivendell under Elrond's tutelage and care) that Aragorn would know of Gandalf's origin and true nature. He might, he might not – and both positions could be validly held and argued for. Please allow me this poetic licence. :) Galadriel certainly knew (as is clear from Unfinished Tales) and, one assumes therefore, the rest of the White Council and hence Elrond.


	10. Calm Before the Storm

My sincere thanks to all those who have reviewed thus far. I am thrilled at the response and just hope you will continue to find the rest of it as entertaining. :) 

Oh. And in advance of this chapter I prehaps should make it clear I have nothing personally against fourteen year olds who fancy Orlando Bloom. Fancy away, me dears. grin

* * *

**Chapter 10** _- "Calm Before The Storm"_

When Penny came to she was not entirely sure what was going on for a few moments.

She was in someone's arms, that much was clear. She groaned a little. The movement stopped and she was aware whoever it was was putting her down gently on the floor.

"Pen-ii?"

She opened her eyes.

Halbarad. She smiled weakly.

"Goheno."

He shook his head and smiled in return but she could see a sadness and incomprehension in his face. She felt tears prick her eyes. This was mad enough to her but it must seem even madder to him, to them all. She stared at him for a minute as a realisation hit. He probably DID think she was insane. Her throat tightened. She really wished she had not worked that one out.

She was aware she needed to pee. Again. This was going to be interesting. Her mind was racing as to how she was going to ask him where and how she could relieve herself. She could feel herself flushing with embarrassment.

Halbarad was looking at her, wondering why her face was red all of a sudden.

"Halbarad... I... err... oh bugger, how do I explain this?" She put a hand on her stomach and looked anxious.

Halbarad suspected what she might be asking. She would have a chamber-pot in her room, would she not? Still, it might be worth showing her where the latrines were in any case. That way she wouldn't have to wait to ask and could just use them when she needed. He nodded.

She hoped he had understood her. Well, she would find out soon enough.

He was talking to her, offering his hand and clearly asking if she thought she could stand. She nodded and struggled to her feet, with him bending slightly to hold her round her waist and then under her arms with one arm to keep her upright. As they walked along the corridor she felt her strength returning a little and eventually, assuring him she was alright, she broke free of his supporting arm and continued walking by his side.

He led her to a doorway that opened into the dark night. To one side of the door was a little alcove in the wall with shelves on which were several candlesticks and lanterns. Halbarad took two of the lanterns, handing one to Penny and then, opening the little door in his, he removed the candle and lit it from one of the glowing wall-brackets. Then he motioned for her to open hers, which she did, and he lit the candle within it and replaced his own in the lantern. Then he beckoned her to follow him. The path was clear enough. Penny just hoped she would remember the way to this door from inside the building for when she next needed to use it.

She was soon stood in front of a small wooden building, exactly like an outhouse. Something was written on the door in tengwar: presumably the elvish for 'thunderbox'. She smirked. What a thought!

Halbarad opened the door and reached to his left where there was a shelf with jugs on it. He picked one up, showing it to Penny and then pointing to a water pump stood to one side outside the latrine. He handed her the jug and she, awkwardly and with difficulty, worked the pump handle and managed to fill it.

Halbarad, watching her, realised just how weak she was. 'She can't have done a day's physical labour in her life!' he thought, astonished.

No wonder she had taken so long to wash the clothes back in Bree and no wonder the hobbit woman had helped her. He had heard all about that from Butterbur.

And her glaring at the women opposite her.

And her using soap.

He shook his head and chuckled. She looked up at him.

"Yes, laugh away! It's all very well for you, Mr 'I can wave a sword above my head and have muscles the size of footballs'. This is hard work."

He smiled apologetically. Then he said he would wait for her back at the door, pointing in that direction. She nodded and he wandered back along the path through the trees.

At least there was no stench coming from this latrine. She had suspected, elves being elves, it would be presentable. She was astonished by what she found, though.

The only light was that of her lantern. The room was completely enclosed except for narrow slats near the roof to allow some daylight in and air. She looked to one side and saw the shelves packed with jugs, clean towels, spare soap. On a kind of counter below them was a bowl, presumably to wash your hands in.

The latrine itself was fashioned like a seat of sorts. Along the far wall was a low, wooden bench with a hole cut in the middle much the same size as that in a modern toilet seat. On one side of the bench and within easy reach there was a pile of leaves – both green and dry – and a tub that contained some powder or pale earth in it and a scoop. She wondered what the tub and scoop were for. The floor was laid with matted rushes and was clean. There were bowls of scented dried flowers at various points in the room. The latrine, as she neared it, did have an odour to it, but not too unpleasant. It was earthy, musty. You could tell what was causing it but it was not overpowering and seemed 'softer' in its tone than you would expect. There was clearly something they were doing to keep the smell down. She wondered if there was something they used to keep it all under control, something they poured over it. Was that was the powder was for? Was she meant to use it? Anyway, the point was it was clean and pleasant enough and she didn't have to face the nightmare that had been Bree. She was thankful to find out that that was a unique experience, and one she NEVER wanted to repeat.

She poured the water she used to wash her hands away outside. She had noticed there seemed a slight damp patch outside on the earth and had suspected, rightly, that that was what you were meant to do, so leaving the bowl clean and empty for the next person to use.

She found Halbarad waiting for her just inside the door, having put his lantern back and extinguished the candle. He led her back to her chambers, which she now realised were not that far from this outside door.

As he turned to leave her, he stopped and turned back to her.

"Pen-ii?"

She looked at him. He pointed to her PJs, still held to her chest.

"Goheno nin," he said gently. She nodded, smiling at him.

"Le hannon," she replied. He inclined his head and left.

As she lay in bed that night she could not sleep. She was turning over and over in her head the strange interrogation she had had with Elrond, Aragorn, Gandalf and Halbarad. She felt her emotions swinging from distress and fear to hysteria and the lunacy of it all. Most of all, though, she felt that same, old panic. Panic that she was even here in the first place, let alone what they must think of her, added to the fact that she could not understand them nor make herself understood.

She had really banked on Gandalf. He was limited by his physical form, no doubt. That thought did not help her much though.

Halbarad had returned to the others and the discussion went on late into the night. It was about Penny, but also about many other serious, indeed more serious, matters that needed to be thought about and talked over. Nothing could be decided or acted upon just yet, of course, but once Maura was awake...

"She was expecting something from me," Gandalf was saying. "I disappointed her somehow. It is... it is as if she already knows us."

"Well, she does. Or as heard of us all at least," Aragorn pointed out.

"Indeed, Aragorn." Gandalf nodded slowly. "I think, though, that she was hoping that I would understand her. I alone, at least, even if the rest of you did not. Her panic and fear when she realised I did not, or do not as yet, is what overwhelmed her earlier, I believe. You say she also fainted when she saw Elladan?"

Halbarad nodded, "Yes. Clearly the first time she had seen one of the Eldar."

"Even so it was an extreme reaction and yet she had heard of us, and my family in particular. And lembas. It is all very strange," Elrond was very puzzled by all this.

"There is something about her," Gandalf was saying quietly. "Something I cannot quite put my finger on. It is as if... She reminds me of those I have met or known from long ages past... and yet... it is as if it is the exact opposite."

The others looked confused.

He looked up and saw their bewilderment and laughed. "I did not say it made any sense, or that I understand it myself. I can only tell you what I sense from her. It is something familiar and yet utterly unfamiliar at the same time."

As Aragorn and Halbarad walked back to their chambers in the early hours, Halbarad insisted on taking a detour past Penny's door. He pressed his ear against it.

"Halbarad! What on earth..?" Aragorn hissed but Halbarad motioned for him to be quiet. He beckoned him over and Aragorn too listened.

It was very faint but unmistakeable even through the wood.

Sobs. She was weeping.

The morning rose bright and clear. Penny was not woken, by the express orders of Elrond, and was left to sleep. As a consequence it was mid- morning when she finally rolled over and stretched. The bed was comfortable, the sheets fresh, and for a brief, all too brief, moment she thought she was back home.

She was groaning to herself that she was probably late for work, seeing how much daylight seemed to filtering through her eyelids. She sighed.

"That was the maddest dream. Really long one too."

As she opened her eyes at last she was confused. Then she panicked and closed them again with an expletive.

Where was she! She had not got drunk again and ended up at Brian the Computer Nerd's flat again, had she! God, she hoped not! That had been a SERIOUSLY bad mistake the first time around. She would not be that stupid, would she?

She groaned as she realised it would entirely depend on how drunk she'd got.

She opened one eye again. Definitely not her room. But definitely not Bri's room, either.

Then, as she saw the murals, took in the washing bowl and jug, the elven green dress she had hung over the back of a chair, it all came flooding back. It wasn't a dream. More was the pity.

A black gloom took her then. She lay in bed for quite a while staring at the whitewashed ceiling.

She was really here. She was really, actually HERE. Somewhere that didn't exist. She had met, now, five people who she knew by name and yet they didn't exist. Couldn't exist. Had never existed. Yet she had spoken to them, touched some of them, would have even gladly strangled one of them on more than one occasion.

How? HOW! How did she get here? What the bloody hell was she going to do now? How would she get home? Could she get home? The tears pricked her eyes once more. She wondered what her mother must be going through.

She sighed and shook her head, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and pushing the sheets and blankets off from around her.

It was pointless thinking about it. She had spent most of the night going round and round trying to make sense of it and had succeeding in just upsetting herself and nearly having another panic attack. She knew she was possibly on the edge of a nervous breakdown as it was or complete insanity. She felt she was barely holding the plot together, frankly. She needed to just NOT think about the questions or implications of it all for a while. She just...

What did she 'just' need to do? Enjoy it? Hah! That was a laugh. Tolkien nut finally in Middle Earth yet too freaked out to enjoy it? Of course! How COULD she? It was all too weird. Too real. Too bloody terrifying.

She thought of all those Mary Sue fics she had enjoyed loathing all these years. She chuckled. She'd like to see some fourteen year-old Orli fancier cope with THIS lot. Could ANYONE cope with it? She seriously doubted it. SHE couldn't, that was for damn sure!

She washed her face and underarms with the scented soap and the flannel. She was grateful she'd shaved recently, but even so: there would come a point when her armpits would need dealing with. And her legs. But armpits were more important.

A thought occurred to her. 'Oh bugger. No safety razors. Cut throat or nothing, probably.'

She didn't like the thought of that AT ALL. Cross that bridge when she came to it, she supposed. She giggled at the thought of Halbarad looking at her like she was insane (just for a change!) as she mimed shaving and then pointed at her armpits.

THAT was something she would be intrigued to find out: were elves ACTUALLY hairless or not? Come to think of it, she could find out the answers to all those niggling questions: were there one or two Glorfindels? DO Balrogs have wings?

She chuckled. Well, she thought, at least she could see the funny side. Sometimes. For a brief second or two. She sighed.

She was hungry. She dressed and ventured out of her room for a rekkie.

Elrond was busy all morning. Frodo was still unconscious and needed tending to. That morning the dwarves from Erebor had arrived so Gloin, Bilbo and Gandalf had been catching up. Halbarad and Aragorn were spending much of their time together and Aragorn introduced him to Merry, Pippin and Sam.

Halbarad was amused by their informality with both Aragorn and Gandalf when he joined them all later but then he knew how the Shire folk could be, if only by reputation and Gandalf's accounts of them, and was not surprised. He could see the elves were, though. That amused him even more.

He wondered how Penny was. Gandalf advised that she be left be, though.

"She needs to find her bearings. Give her time. Time can work wonders. We will discover her secret and help her, I am sure of it, even if it takes us a little while to do so. Like you I do not think she is dangerous, other than being a danger to herself by her ignorance and strange behaviour. But she is not a threat to us in the way that the Shadow and his minions are. At least I do not believe so."

"Elrond is more cautious of her, though, is he not?" Halbarad asked.

"Yes indeed," replied Gandalf, nodding. "But do not blame him. This is his realm and these are his people. It is right that he should be wary of anything that may endanger them."

Halbarad nodded. He had not expected anything less of Elrond and did not blame him in the least. He would be thinking exactly the same way in his position.

Meanwhile Penny was wondering what time it was and if breakfast might still be available. She felt shy to just go wandering about in search of the kitchens, though, or even just helping herself if she found them. She preferred to bump into someone in the hope they might offer her something. Better yet: find Halbarad (now her constant and her rock). 'Even if he is irritating beyond belief at times,' she thought.

She passed many elves in the corridors as she wandered. They would smile and nod at her and she shyly returned their greeting. Every time she saw one she felt her stomach tighten, her head reel a little, and yet with every elf her sense that this was real was strengthened. In the most insane way possible it was actually making her feel more sure of things.

She knew she was utterly lost now. There was no way she could have found her way back to her chambers. She came across a door that led outside.

"Oh well. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, I guess," she murmured and headed out.

The sun was shining and there were few clouds in the sky. It was mild enough, given the time of year. As she stepped out and into the greenery, Penny gasped.

It was beautiful, just as the interior was. There were paths leading off into the trees. Glades were visible here and there. Buildings, like summer houses, or mere gazebos, were dotted here and there, with wild roses and vines twining round the pillars holding up the roofs. There was a fountain, the music of the water as it tinkled back to earth a delight to the senses. She could smell roses and orange-blossom and herbs as she walked. For the first time she could truly forget: utterly lose herself in something wonderful and amazing without thinking about where she actually was or what had happened to her.

Then she saw them. A small group, some sat on a bench, the others lying back or sitting on the grass round about: Gandalf and four hobbits. One was clearly a little older than the rest and was seated next to Gandalf on the bench. One hobbit was lying on his stomach, his bare feet crossed together up in the air. The other two were sitting listening as Gandalf regaled them all with some tale. She stopped short, her heart thumping and her mouth dry.

She had not noticed, some way to her right, Aragorn and Halbarad who had wandered from the main group, having heard this story many times before, to discuss private matters.

It was Aragorn who saw her first and, stopping his friend in mid-flow, gestured to her. They both stared, seeing her as she spotted the hobbits and froze, watching the colour drain from her face.

Halbarad shook his head. "Just like when she saw Elladan," he muttered.

They started towards her, worrying she may be about to faint once more. As they neared her they could hear her talking quietly. One word seemed familiar: 'Bilbo'.

"Do you think she means Bilba?" asked Aragorn.

Halbarad nodded. She had to.

Aragorn narrowed his eyes. Having heard of people with importance was one thing. Having heard of a hobbit whose only significance was that he had once carried something that few should know of was something else entirely.

She was walking. Fast. In a direction AWAY from the hobbits. As they watched they saw her pick up speed and start running through the trees.

"Quick, Aragorn, before we lose her!"

Halbarad was off, Aragorn behind him. Gandalf, looking up, had seen her in the distance and the two Dúnedain after her. He stood, apologising to the hobbits, and followed at a more respectable pace.

She was crying, the tears streaming. She had no idea why she was running. She just wanted to get away and yet she knew how futile it was.

She heard a voice, someone shouting her name. She did not stop. The voice got nearer, and then she heard footsteps chasing her, and finally an arm on her shoulder, stopping her and pulling her round at the same time. Halbarad, and Aragorn behind him, their faces concerned and breathing hard.

"Pen-ii! What has happened?"

Halbarad was talking, his voice earnest but a little hard. She shook her head, bringing her hands to her face as she wept. She slumped to the floor.

"You wouldn't understand, Halbarad, there is no point in me trying to explain."

She looked at him as he crouched in front of her, and then up at Aragorn who was standing looking down at her kindly but serious.

"Goheno nin. It's all I seem to say, I know, but..."

She broke down once more.

A grumbling voice told of Gandalf's arrival.

"What is going on here?"

Halbarad and Aragorn explained. Penny looked up at the mention of Bilba and periannath. They all noticed. Gandalf crouched down to her as Halbarad and Aragorn watched.

"Do you know of Bilba, my child? You have heard of him also?"

She wondered what he was asking. And why was he calling Bilbo...? Oh, of course. Westron translation.

She suddenly realised she could not remember any of the hobbits names. Their REAL names. Saying Frodo, Meriadoc or Peregrin would be hopeless.

"What are you asking me about Bilbo.. Bilba?" She corrected herself.

"Bilbo?" Gandalf asked, surprised.

She nodded. "In my tongue he is Bilbo, not Bilba."

Gandalf, Halbarad and Aragorn exchanged a glance. They did not understand. Did this mean she knew of Bilbo or not?

She looked at Gandalf, "Mithrandir, try and understand. This is all very confusing. You should not be here, or I shouldn't be here, or I don't know what, frankly. You are none of you real and yet you are. I do not understand. I cannot make you understand. I am frightened, Gandalf. Frightened and alone and lost and I feel like I am going mad. Are you getting ANY of this at all?" She looked at him desperately.

Gandalf nodded.

She could see he had not understood her word for word but she got the impression he had got the gist of it. Why she got that impression she did not know. It was highly likely she imagined it, basing it all on her desperate hope: clutching at straws.

Gandalf turned to the others. "I do not understand completely but as I said before she is frightened. There is something about this, about being here, about seeing and meeting us that is terrifying for her. I do not know why, but I believe with each new person she meets who she knows or knows of, we can expect this reaction."

The two men were looking at him with open mouths.

"But how? How can she know of us? Without having met us? Without coming from any one of the cultures or peoples we know of?"

"I cannot answer you, Aragorn," Gandalf responded, shaking his head sadly. "Not yet. Time. Time and patience. We will get there." He turned back to Penny, still sniffing slightly on the ground. He held out his hand to her, "Come, my dear. Have you eaten yet today? It is soon midday and we shall have some food."

She took his hand and found great strength in it as she pulled herself up. He was much stronger than the weak old man he appeared to be. Not that she was surprised.

They walked back to the halls of Imladris in silence. Halbarad motioned that they were going to eat and smiled at her obvious delight.

"Hungry?" he asked, patting his stomach.

"Very," she nodded, spreading her arms wide to indicate a huge amount. They laughed.

"She can be quite pleasant when she is sane," murmured Aragorn to his friend.

"Yes indeed. It's just a pity it happens all too infrequently."

"Patience," grumbled Gandalf beside them.

Lunch was a strange affair for Penny. It was held in a large dining hall where there were huge and magnificently detailed tapestries on the walls. Elrond was not there, since he was eating in his chambers, but the hobbits were and many elves.

Penny stuck close to Halbarad who led her to sit a little away from the company so she wasn't so overwhelmed by it all. Aragorn joined them while Gandalf sat next to Penny. On the other side of Aragorn and Gandalf from Penny sat the four hobbits. She tried not to stare, but the two men and Gandalf noticed her occasional glances in their direction.

One hobbit seemed younger than the rest, both in features and mannerisms, and she wondered if that was Pippin. As for which of the remaining two was Merry and which Sam, she had no idea. She felt self-conscious with them all there and ate little in the end, sticking to bread and fruit. There was wine, however, but after Halbarad's stern glance after her second cup she refused Aragorn's offer of a third as much as she wanted it and felt she needed it. The moment she felt she could help herself, if that ever happened, she was loading up on the booze and getting slaughtered, she decided. Halbarad or no bloody Halbarad.

As she sat, sipping a cup of water and watching the extraordinary amount of chatter and eating going on with the hobbits, some figures caught her eye. Dwarves. A group of about five or so. One had a white beard and was dressed in a white tunic with a silver and jewelled necklace.

Her stomach swam. The Council. Of course.

"Glóin," she murmured.

Gandalf exchanged a sharp look with Aragorn and Halbarad's spoon stopped on its way to his mouth. They watched as she followed the dwarves with her eyes as they left the hall.

"Gimli would have been among that lot. Wonder which one he was?"

She suddenly saw Aragorn was staring at her. She flushed, turned to Halbarad and Gandalf and realised all three had heard her. She looked at the table.

"Goheno nin."

That was turning out to be the most overused Sindarin phrase ever.

Elrond had wanted another questioning of Penny that day. He would be free for an hour or two in the afternoon. Aragorn and Halbarad had agreed, feeling that there were too many important questions that needed answers. Gandalf, however, said 'no'.

"As I keep saying, she needs time. I think we will get a lot more from her once she has settled down a little. It is all too much for her right now."

"What is all too much?"

"I wish I knew, Elrond," Gandalf sidhed. "That is what I read from her. I think it more productive if we wait, till tomorrow or the day after."

Elrond argued the point but Gandalf would not be moved. As it was the matter was decided when Frodo woke later that day. The Council would be now held tomorrow and so no questioning would be done of Penny till at least the day afterwards.

"The matter of the One is far more pressing. Elrond, I know you do not sense such an evil from her. Therefore I feel we can afford a delay. The One, however, will not wait," Gandalf said quietly.

Elrond conceded the point. He did not like having this stranger who knew far too much in their midst, but it was true he sensed no immediate threat from her as such.

That evening, as they all ate in the great hall, Elrond, Aragorn, Gandalf and Halbarad could see Penny's face, white and strained, as she cast her gaze about her, knowing that near enough the entire Fellowship were here bar Boromir, that Legolas and Erestor would be here, that... yes... she could see Elladan or rather two elves who looked exactly like Elladan seated near their father. There was a beautiful blond, male elf beside Elrond and she wondered if that might be Glorfindel. Near enough in the centre of the table, beside Aragorn and near her brothers, sat Arwen. It had to be. There was no-one else it could be. She was extraordinary and Penny was immediately reminded of the wall-hanging of Luthien she had seen in Elrond's study.

Halbarad, sat next to her, could see she was very withdrawn and quiet, that she was taking everything in, and gasping slightly as her eyes fell on one individual or another. Penny could feel her heart thumping. She ate little, even though Halbarad insisted she try. She listened to the chatter around her, watched as the hobbits tucked into their food with relish. She spotted the dwarves and the one with the white beard in earnest conversation with a hobbit she had not seen before, perched on a pile of cushions.

Frodo. It had to be. Frodo and Glóin had talked at the meal the night before...

Penny stopped breathing as it hit her...

The Council. It would be tomorrow.

* * *

_Goheno nin_ - forgive me

_Le hannon_ - I thank thee


	11. The Proverbial Hits the Fan

**Chapter 11** _- "The Proverbial Hits the Fan"_

As the meal ended and people started drifting away to cross the corridor and into the Hall of Fire, Penny could feel herself shaking. She knew it was ridiculous, yet it was still completely freaking her out not only to be here but to be part of an event she knew so well. However she also knew... she KNEW... it had never happened... had it?

Halbarad, Aragorn, Gandalf and Elrond had exchanged glances all through the meal. The other three could tell Halbarad was concerned. Gandalf had been keeping a close eye on the proceedings and had seen her eyes widen as she had clocked Frodo. He mulled over this.

"Interesting," he had mumbled to himself.

Halbarad was leading her to the Hall of Fire. She didn't want to go. Didn't want to witness the reunion of Frodo and Bilbo that would take place there, see Aragorn and Arwen side by side as Frodo had seen them, hear Bilbo sing his song of Earendil. Part of her did - wanted to very, very much, like it was a dream come true - but most of her wanted to run screaming back to Hampstead and her duvet and the grey London rain.

She closed her eyes in fear as she stepped into the Hall but the sound that met her there stopped her breath. Halbarad felt her grip on him relax completely as she stared in wonder at the elf who was singing.

It was heavenly. Rapturous. There were no words to describe it. Even though she didn't understand a word it didn't matter. In that moment she felt every fear leave her, every iota of panic fall away as she lost herself in the beauty of that voice.

Halbarad, watching her, smiled. It was the first time he had seen her as she probably truly was. Admittedly she still looked a little strange to him with her shoulder length hair, but she was clean, presentable and pleasant enough to look at. She was not too plain at all, in truth (when she wasn't screaming, trembling or weeping that was). He led her to a bench and she sat, still transfixed, her eyes not leaving the elf. Halbarad hesitated for a few moments and then, seeing she was not aware of his presence for the time being, took the opportunity to mingle.

She saw it. Saw Frodo rush to greet his friend as Elrond stood watching them, smiling, but she did not flinch or panic. She smiled. It was wonderful to see these two famous hobbits interact with each other. Even from the opposite side of the room their affection and ease with each other was obvious. As another hobbit curled up to sleep near them she realised she now knew which one was Samwise. She smiled. Good. That pleased her enormously.

After some time she could feel herself growing drowsy. She stood and left, hoping she could remember the way back to her chambers. Gandalf and Elrond were talking together as she passed them by. They glanced up at her. She bowed slightly and smiled, not knowing what on earth the Sindarin for 'goodnight' would be. They returned her smile and watched her disappear, Gandalf in particular studying her from underneath his enormous eyebrows.

Penny woke early the next day. She had slept better that night, though still restlessly. Without questions and pressure, she could almost forget where she was and what was happening, and that helped considerably. She realised too she was better away from company, or at least company she 'knew' and 'recognised'. The only exception had been last night as she had listened to the elvish songs.

She washed and then tidied her hair. She had come back to her chambers the previous night to find her Bree dress and undershift, which had disappeared, were back, looking clean and fresh. She had been very touched by this. It was kind and meant she didn't have to go through the drudgery of washing them herself. Her hand was still cut and bruised and she hadn't relished the idea of pounding a heavy wet dress against rocks for hours on end. She now changed to the clean undershift.

She headed out to find out where breakfast was being served, if she hadn't missed it. She made her way back to the dining hall. Many people were there, including Halbarad she noted. She felt very self-conscious though no one gave her a second glance.

A figure bustled past her. A hobbit. He turned and grinned at her, saying something. She furrowed her brows in incomprehension and shook her head smiling apologetically.

This was... which one was this? Pippin? Pippin or Merry. It wasn't Frodo or Sam. That was definite. The face looked young enough and cheeky enough for her to suspect it was Pippin. Part of her brain refused to process it but another part was thrilled at actually meeting him properly, face to face.

He was miming eating now and holding out his hand to her to take her with him to the tables. She smiled, nodded in thanks and let him do so.

Her heart was thumping slightly as she found herself being made to sit right amongst the hobbits. Bilbo was not with them, but the other three were there. Aragorn was seated near them and some of the dwarves. Aragorn looked up as Penny sat, smiling and inclining his head at her.

"Aiya," she said, suddenly remembering it from some fanfic she had read. She prayed it was correct. He beamed at her. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Aiya, Pen-ii," he replied across Frodo and Sam to her. Halbarad, seated on the opposite side from Aragorn looked up as he spoke, saw Penny and smiled at her, also repeating the same greeting.

Aragorn glanced over at his friend and said quietly in disbelief. "She speaks Quenya now!"

Halbarad chuckled. "I sincerely doubt it. She can barely speak Sindarin."

Aragorn shook his head. "It's all very odd."

Halbarad sighed, "Well, I did tell you just that two days ago!"

Pippin was busy introducing himself and the others to this woman he had befriended in the doorway before he sat down beside her. She didn't speak Westron, that much was clear, so he spoke simply and slowly.

"I am Razanur Tûk of Sûza, or Raz. This," he indicated Frodo, "is Maura Labingi. Beside him," he pointed at Sam, "is Banazîr Galpsi..."

Sam interrupted to say, "Ban. Just call me Ban." Penny repeated "Ban" and Sam smiled broadly.

"And this," said Pippin, laying a hand firmly on his other cousin's shoulder just as Merry bit into a large slice of bread and honey, "is Kalimac Brandagamba. But you can call him Kali."

Penny, having only just caught their names and already struggling to remember them since they were so strange sounding to her and unfamiliar, smiled nervously.

"I am Penny. Penelope, but you can call me Penny. Penny or Pen."

They all nodded and bowed their heads. Frodo was turned to her, speaking Sindarin. Penny looked bewildered.

Halbarad broke in. "Maura she speaks no Westron, nor Sindarin bar a few words. She is not from here."

Frodo nodded and the hobbits, eyeing her with interest now, fell to the important task of eating and teasing each other across the morning repast.

Penny's appetite failed her once more as she sat there, transfixed and not a little giddy at the thought of who she had just been speaking to and been introduced to. At least she now knew their names. Well... perhaps. Possibly. She'd forgotten quite how mad sounding they were. She would probably remember Maura, but as for the rest...

Aragorn and Halbarad watched her as she stared at the hobbits, though she did her best to cover it.

She couldn't really accept it. She was here, sitting next to the Ringbearer, the Mayor, the Thain and the Master: four of the Fellowship and no less brave or heroic than Aragorn himself sat beside them. They would face talking trees, giant spiders, kill a Witchking and destroy the One Ring in the next few months.

As she had done so many times before, she paled, shook and felt her head swim. Her head sank into her hands. This was not happening. It couldn't be happening. She shook her head. She needed to get out. She needed to leave. At this rate she might never come to eat in this wretched Hall ever again. She needed to get away from them all. Now. Right bloody now.

She stood. Halbarad stiffened, his hand frozen as he lifted his food to his mouth. He watched as she inclined her head to the hobbits, murmuring an apology, and left with as much dignity as she could muster given that she was trembling like a leaf.

Aragorn and Halbarad exchanged a glance.

"Well at least she hasn't run off screaming or weeping for once," Halbarad murmured.

Merry, sat beside him, cast a quick glance in his direction and then at the woman nearing the large doorway to the Hall. The hobbits had noticed her reaction to them but had just assumed that, being foreign, she was unused to hobbits. Now it seemed she was ill or in distress.

"Poor woman," Frodo muttered, watching her leave.

Penny could feel her stomach twisting in knots. It was taking all her willpower to not break into a run but she didn't want to create yet another scene.

'Halbarad must be fed up to the back teeth with me,' she thought. 'Poor sod.'

She wasn't looking where she was going and suddenly stopped herself short before she walked straight into someone. She murmured an apology and looked up into a pair of grey eyes, like those shared by Aragorn and Halbarad. Same dark hair too. He had a beard, clipped very short, but it was clear he had been travelling since his clothes were stained with dust and mud but they were fine nonetheless: brocaded and the cloak fur-lined. He had that same stench about him that Halbarad had always had on the road. She could smell him from here. He smiled pleasantly enough and said something to her and stood aside to let her pass so he could continue into the room.

As he went past her, Penny stared after him in astonishment as she saw, upon his hip, a horn. A white horn, tipped with silver and with gold embossed upon it. The horn of Gondor.

The room span. Thank God she was near the door frame because she leaned out for it suddenly to keep herself upright.

Four hobbits and two men watched her, concerned, as they saw her pale and sway slightly. Halbarad stood, waving Aragorn to stay where he was, and he followed after her.

Boromir. Bloody Boromir! All she needed was to have Legolas and Gimli pointed out to her and she'd have the set!

Looking up she was aware of a group of blond-haired elves sat at one of the long tables and she could still see the dwarves, so the two of them would have to be here somewhere.

She turned on her heel and sped down the corridor as fast as she could.

She was walking in the gardens, had almost managed to forget and get herself back on an even keel, when she heard a bell ring. She felt her chest tighten. The Council. She wondered where it was being held.

She felt faint and sat before she fell down, leaning up against a tree trunk. Then she heard a footfall behind her and turned to find Halbarad smiling at her.

He would be a loose end today. Normally he would not have stayed so long in Rivendell and he only stayed now because of the need to get to the bottom of the mystery of this strange woman he had found. He could kill time and perhaps help her to relax and calm a little by showing her round Imladris.

It was the last thing Penny needed. What the bloody hell was he doing here! She just wanted to be left alone but he was always hovering! She was being ungrateful she knew: when she felt panicky she was glad to have him around, but right at this moment, in the knowledge of what was happening right now, she didn't need it. She shot a dark look at him.

"What are you doing here, Halbarad?" she said, the annoyance clear in her voice.

He scowled. Back to the fiery Pen-ii so it would seem. He had second thoughts about showing her round. There were things he could busy himself with, friends he could visit. He didn't have to take time out to be pleasant to her.

She could see he was irritated. "Goheno nin, Halbarad," she sighed. "I am... oh, you wouldn't understand. Meeting the periannath, seeing Boromir, it's all too weird."

Halbarad had shot her a look as she had said the name of the Gondorian ambassador. There is no way she could have been told his name by someone. He had only arrived in Imladris just before the breakfast meal. He shook his head. Another thing to tell Gandalf and the others.

He held out his hand to her, "Come Pen-ii. Let me try and help you forget whatever it is that troubles you for a little while."

The day passed without incident. Halbarad spent most of it in Penny's company, as much as anything to keep an eye on her. Penny managed to forget, for a while, something of what was troubling her. She saw the stables, the kitchens, elves working at looms, spinning wheels, tanning, smithing. The place was a hive of activity. She was surprised by how big it was and it was clear there were more buildings outside the walls of Imladris itself. Quite the busy little community. Apart from the fact that nearly everyone she saw was stunningly beautiful in a way that made her want to weep at her own physical inadequacy, and they all had pointy ears and were ridiculously tall, it was, in the end, quite an interesting and relaxing day.

The next morning she found herself once more seated near the hobbits at breakfast. Conversation flowed round her as she silently ate her fruit and bread. She was slowly accepting this situation but it still made her very uncomfortable. There were many things which she refused to think about even though they kept coming back into her head again and again. The most pressing of which was that she KNEW. She knew what the outcome of all this was, what was going to happen. That had hit her at yesterday's morning meal. She didn't want a repeat performance.

She screwed her eyes tight shut. 'I'm not thinking about it. I refuse. I don't want to know.'

She focused in on the chatter instead. 'Better start learning sometime, I guess. Familiarise myself with the accent, any words that are repeated.' It was a fairly useless exercise: she'd never shown any propensity for languages but it kept her brain occupied, at least, and that was the main thing.

As she left the hall she felt a hand upon her arm. She turned to find Halbarad looking down at her.

"Pen-ii. We need to talk with you. Elrond, Aragorn, Mithrandir, all of us. It is important, Pen-ii. You understand?"

She guessed what was happening and her heart sank. Just when I thought I could forget about all this for a while. A wry smile twisted her lips: 'No-one expects the Spanish Inquisition!' Too bloody right! Not that she blamed them. But...

She sighed. She was NOT looking forward to this. Not one tiny bit.

Elrond had put aside the entire morning for this. He had insisted that Glorfindel and Erestor be present also. Gandalf and Aragorn had been concerned at such a large number of people questioning her. Elrond was firm, however.

"You have both told me she found the hobbits of significance, Maura and Bilba in particular. She knew of the Nazgûl, considered them a joke. This is serious and my foremost counsellors should be here."

Gandalf nodded. He knew better than to argue with Elrond, especially since Elrond had already allowed the delay in questioning her.

Halbarad led her to the same room as she had been taken to before. As she entered she could see that there were in fact large doors that, on the opposite side of the entrance to the room, opened out like French windows onto the gardens. The weak autumn sun filled the room as did the scent of whatever flower was growing round the doorway. She smiled but as she turned to face those already in the room, her smile froze.

Oh my God. They had to be joking!

A single chair was placed in the centre of the room facing a row of chairs placed in a semi-circle around it. It couldn't have been a more intimidating arrangement. She noticed too that there were more people here than last time.

'And all male, of course. Typical. I'll be outgunned hormonally just for a bloody start off!'

Elrond was already seated in one chair near the centre with Glorfindel to one side on his left. It had to be Glorfindel, she knew, because he was blond, though she wondered briefly if it might be Legolas. No, there is no reason why Legolas would be here, she scolded herself. She suspected the other dark haired elf was Erestor, as Elrond's chief advisor. She noted she was not introduced to either of them. Aragorn was seating himself next to Glorfindel as she considered all this, while Gandalf and Erestor came to sit on Elrond's right.

As she had entered the room had fallen silent. Those standing and chatting had broken away to take their seats immediately on seeing her. Halbarad led her to the central chair and then took his place next to Erestor.

Penny looked round at them all slowly. There faces were stern, though not cruel. This was serious, she knew. They would be gentle, or at least she hoped they would, but she suspected they would want answers and that they would not stop till they got some.

She let her eyes flick up to Gandalf. 'Please God. Please understand me. Help me, dammit. You. You, of all people. Please.' Her eyes were filling with tears. Her stomach was tight with nerves. She could feel her skin go cold and clammy as she started to tremble. She strongly suspected she was about to bring up her breakfast.

A glance was exchanged amongst the inquisitors as they saw the effect they were having on her without having even said a word.

Elrond shifted in his seat slightly. "Pen-ii?"

She looked up at him, her hands clenched tightly in her lap to stop them from shaking quite so much.

"Pen-ii, who are you? Where do you come from?"

No reaction other than obvious confusion and incomprehension.

He tried something else. "How do you know of us? You mentioned Aragorn to Halbarad, you knew Elladan, knew Glorfindel and the name of his horse. You recognised me and Mithrandir immediately." He was gesturing to each of them as he named them. "How, Pen-ii? Tell us."

She was staring at him nervously, then round to each of them. She suspected what he was asking. Her gaze settled finally at Gandalf but he just watched with kindly eyes that gave nothing away.

Aragorn was speaking now, his voice deep and gentle, "Pen-ii, why did you mention me to Halbarad? Halbarad. You." He pointed at her and then motioned talking with his hand and then pointed at himself, "Me. You said 'Aragorn', 'Estel', 'Elessar'." He twisted his hand as if asking a question. "Why? How did you know?"

She nodded. She understood. Her gaze sunk to her knees. How on earth was she going to explain this.

She looked at them all and they could see the tears in her eyes, the despair in her gaze.

She looked, pleadingly, at Gandalf once more and spoke directly to him, "Mithrandir, I can't explain this. Really I can't. I mean, I will, but you will not understand it. There's no way you'll understand it. I don't understand it for goodness sake. It's mad. _I'm_ mad, I think. And you will think I'm crazy too. Completely insane."

She had tears running silently down her cheeks, while she pointed at herself and tapped the side of her head.

Gandalf spoke. "It is not easy and I cannot understand her exactly, but I feel she is frightened we will not understand. That we will think her insane. I think she thinks she is insane herself."

There was a ripple of murmurs among the questioners. Penny was watching them sadly, unsure of what to say or do.

Aragorn spoke once more, "Go on, Pen-ii. We are listening."

She took a deep breath then held out her hands, palms together.

They could see how violently she was shaking now.

Without looking at any of them, but keeping her gaze firmly on her hands, she opened them, as if they were a book.

There was a silence as those sat in front of her tried to work out what on earth she could mean.

She glanced at Gandalf. "A book. I have read about you all in a book. I know your stories."

Though his face showed little, his eyes were suddenly a little darker than they had been. Somehow she guessed he understood her at last.

"You are not real. None of you. You can't be." Her voice was rising a little, the edginess and panic in it clear for them all to hear. "You don't exist. Any of you. This place doesn't exist. Imladris, Eriador, Arda. It's.. You're.. You're NOT REAL!" She collapsed into sobs, bringing her hands to her face.

Elrond growled, "I do not appreciate being shouted at in my own halls."

Erestor was looking dark and both Glorfindel and Aragorn were astonished. Halbarad, having seen this behaviour all too often simply sighed and shook his head.

Gandalf, however, sat thoughtfully for a minute, his eyebrows arched in surprise. At last he spoke. "She has heard of us. Of all of us. She has read about us." There was a gasp of astonishment.

"What!" exclaimed Aragorn, staring at Gandalf and then at Penny.

She, meanwhile, had lifted her head as she heard their reaction to whatever it was that Gandalf was saying. 'Please. Please tell me he has understood. Somehow. Please. He's a bloody demi-god, for goodness sake. How could he NOT understand me?'

"I do not know how," Gandalf continued. "Nor do I think she has said how. But... and this may go some way to explaining her strange behaviour... she did not think we existed. We were not real for her. To meet us in the flesh, to know we do exist, is very distressing and traumatic for her. That much is clear. Painfully obvious, in fact, and I should have realised this a lot sooner."

Five pairs of eyes turned to stare at Penny in utter astonishment and disbelief. She felt their gazes on her and flushed, feeling very uncomfortable all of a sudden.

"But how..?" Halbarad was saying. "How could she have 'read' of us? It doesn't make any sense! Who knows of us other than ourselves? No-one outside of the elves of Imladris or the Dúnedain knows of me? Who, outside of a few people, knows of Aragorn's lineage? How did she know of what happened at the ford? I don't believe her. She's lying!"

For the first time Halbarad truly doubted his instincts about this woman. Elrond and Erestor nodded their agreement with him.

"It is not possible, Mithrandir. You are mistaken," Elrond was saying.

Gandalf just nodded calmly. "We shall see," he said.

He turned to Penny and said her name and she turned to look at him, her cheeks still wet with her tears.

"Pen-ii, they do not believe you. How do you know us? What do you know? How can you know things that no-one but those who were there could tell you?"

Her brows furrowed. He said again, "We do not believe you could know such things from a book. How is it possible?"

As he asked the second time his eyes closed and Penny suddenly heard his voice in her head, as if calling to her from a great distance. He was speaking in his own tongue, and yet she understood him, though she knew not how. Just the sense of what he was saying at least. She gasped, staring at him in astonishment.

Then, in one movement, she was out of her seat, and on the floor in front of him, her hands on his knees and looking up into his face as she wept in relief.

"Le hannon, Mithrandir. Oh thank God. Thank you. Thank you. You have no idea what it's been like. Le hannon."

He smiled down at her and leant forward a little in his chair to stroke her hair. But he said nothing, just gestured, kindly, for her to return to her seat and answer. She nodded and stood.

They didn't believe her. Okay. Well. Let's see now. She turned, looking at each one in turn. Start with the easy ones first, she guessed.

She approached Erestor. She bowed.

"Erestor?"

He nodded and couldn't have looked more surprised if she'd slapped him in the face with a wet fish.

"Erestor, Chief Advisor to Lord Elrond of Imladris."

Gandalf, smirking, dug him in the ribs, "I believe you have just been told your title and position in the house of Lord Elrond." The others had their jaws on the floor.

"Mithrandir, well you know what I know of you. You are a member of the White Council." Gandalf looked puzzled. She listed on her fingers, "Mithrandir, Saruman, Elrond, Celeborn, Galadriel: the White Council."

There was a gasp and loud murmurs.

"What IS this, Mithrandir!" Elrond had to restrain himself from jumping from his seat.

Gandalf motioned for them all to calm themselves, though even he himself had been surprised by this.

She continued, "You went to Dol Guldur to find Sauron."

There was an intake of breath all round the room at the mention of these two names.

"You persuaded Bilba to join Thorin, to kill Smaug and regain Erebor. You attacked Dol Guldur." She made a gesture with her hand to indicate movement as she continued, "Sauron to Mordor."

Stunned silence. They needed no translation for what she had just told them.

"Halbarad. Of the Dunedain. Great hero and warrior. Friend to Aragorn," she turned to him now, "Called 'Estel' by the Eldar. Aragorn son of Arathorn and Gilraen," Aragorn's chin dropped, his eyes wide.

She motioned to her head as if placing a crown on her head, "King Elessar of Gondor and Arnor."

Gasps and murmurs once more from all but Gandalf.

"Betrothed to Arwen Undomiel." She looked at Elrond who was staring at her, his hands tightly clenching the arms of his chair, unable to speak or move.

She moved closer to Aragorn and slowly reached out a hand. He watched as her hand touched the hilt of his sword.

"Narsil. Isildur. The sword that was broken." She made a motion as if breaking something over her knee.

Again: no translation needed. Aragorn and Halbarad exchanged an open mouthed glance, both shaking their heads in disbelief.

"You found Gollum, Smeagol."

'Gollum' they understood, but not Smeagol. Seeing their confusion she realised that it, too, must be a translated name. She had no idea what his 'real' name was. She carried on regardless.

"You took him, Gollum, to Thranduil. You met the periannath. Fought Nazgûl on Amon Sûl. As did you," she turned to Gandalf then who was looking at her in astonishment

"What! How can she know such things!" Elrond was standing, the fury and bewilderment clear in his face.

"Give it time, my friend," Gandalf said quietly, reaching for his arm. "It will all become clear, I am certain of it."

Penny had stopped, unsure whether she should continue. She knew she would be frightening them, possibly raising their suspicions of her to dangerous levels, but she had little choice. They wanted answers: they were going to bloody get them. Let THEM deal with a little insanity for a change. Share and share alike!

She glanced at Gandalf. He smiled and nodded, gesturing for her to continue.

She turned to Glorfindel. "Glorfindel." He nodded, smiling, though clearly surprised. "Now, I have a question for you. One or two?" She held up her fingers, smiling.

He looked puzzled. Gandalf, though, his eyebrows raised, chuckled.

She turned to Gandalf, "Well, there is Glorfindel of Imladris, who rescued Maura from the Nazgul at the ford of Bruinen..."

Everyone looked at Halbarad who looked back at them with an 'I told you so' expression on his face.

"...and then there is Glorfindel of Gondolin who slew the Balrog."

There was a brief silence. Glorfindel was suddenly grinning.

"Well, she knows her history," Erestor murmured. "I'll give her that."

Seeing his grin, Penny asked again, holding her fingers up as she did so, "So: one Glorfindel? Or two?" Glorfindel's grin widened and Gandalf laughed.

Elrond snarled, "This is no laughing matter, Mithrandir."

Gandalf coughed a muttered 'no of course it isn't' but his eyes twinkled brightly still. Glorfindel held up one finger to her. Penny beamed.

"I knew it! I knew it, I KNEW it! A-ha!"

Glorfindel was pleased that his answer had delighted her so, but he was still utterly mystified. Baffled amusement was clear on the faces of all except Elrond who was doing his very best Queen Victoria impression by not being amused in the slightest by all of this.

She turned to him now. She bowed. "Elrond. Lord of Imladris. Father to Elladan, Elrohir and Arwen Undomiel. Husband to Celebrian who is now in Valinor."

Elrond was paling.

"Brother to Elros, first king of Numenor." She made the 'crown' sign again. "Son to Elwing and Earendil," and she pointed to the sky and made a flashing motion with her hand.

Elrond nodded, slowly, the shock clear in his face.

"Earendil, son of Tuor and Idril of Gondolin. Elwing, daughter of Dior, son of Beren and Luthien," and she pointed behind her to the tapestry she had admired so much before. "Herald to Gil-galad and fought at the Battle of the Last Alliance."

A movement from Gandalf interrupted her. He was looking questioningly at her.

"Battle of the Last Alliance. Gil-galad, Elendil, Oropher?" She motioned, "Went to Mordor. Fought Sauron." She made as if waving a sword about (much to the amusement of the warriors in the room).

"Elendil, Oropher, Gil-galad all died." She considered dragging her finger across her throat but thought better of it. She made a spreading movement instead, though she wasn't sure why – the gestural equivalent of 'laid low', she supposed.

"Isildur with Narsil," she made a cutting gesture against the fingers of one hand.

She had not noticed but as she made that gesture, even before she said what she said next, the room was suddenly filled with tension you could cut with a knife. Elrond in particular was looking dark.

"Cut the Ring from Sauron." She held one finger with the fingers of the other hand to indicate a Ring.

There was a barely perceptible intake of breath from all six questioners.

She turned to Elrond. "You and Cirdan. Told Isildur to throw it in Orodruin." She gestured taking off a ring and throwing it. "Isildur," she shook her head and finger, "refused."

She had seen the look in Elrond's face. She glanced briefly at the others and saw their faces, even Gandalf's now, were grim and hard. She swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. She wasn't sure if she should continue or not but she did.

"Isildur killed by yrch. Ring in Anduin."

Glances were being exchanged. Mutterings of 'there is no way she could know this: this was only made public yesterday in the Council' were being shared.

She carried on.

"Friend of Gollum." She bent as if picking something up.

Gandalf said quietly, "She means Nahald." There were quiet gasps from the others.

"Gollum." She made a stabbing motion and snatched something.

"Gollum to ... Misty Mountains... umm... Emyn. The 'emyn'?"

She looked at Gandalf who nodded slowly, unable to believe what he was hearing.

"Bilba." She made another grabbing motion.

The mutterings grew louder now.

"Bilba gave it to..." She wracked her brain for his actual name. Not Frodo. NOT Frodo. "Maura."

Elrond was on his feet now, his eyes flashing.

"Maura with the Ring." She gestured to her finger again and then pointed to the floor, "Here to Imladris."

She was shaking. She did not like the glare in Elrond's eye. At all.

She slowly walked back to her seat, sat down, and waited for it all to kick off.

It was Elrond who started shouting first.

* * *

Author's Note: My thanks to readers who reminded me that 'Smeagol' and 'Deagol' are the translated names for the two. Their actual names were Trahald and Nahald respectively.

_Aiya_ - hello (Quenya)

Goheno nin forgive me (sindarin)

Le hannon I thank thee (sindarin)


	12. All Hell Breaks Loose

**Chapter 12** - _"All Hell Breaks Loose"_

Bloody _hell_!

She knew it would get a reaction but it was actually pretty scary seeing six very powerful individuals go off on one all at the same time. She wondered if provoking five warriors (and she suspected Erestor could probably hold his own in a fight as well if push came to shove so it was near enough six warriors to all intents and purposes), one of them a Maia, was SUCH a good idea. Looking at the expressions on their faces, quite possibly not.

Elrond was exploding.

It had never occurred to her that elves could get red in the face, but he was puce, his ears near glowing. He was ranting at Halbarad and Gandalf, but mainly Halbarad. Halbarad was giving as good back, though. Both were gesticulating in her direction. No doubt she was a threat and a danger and Halbarad was being blamed for bringing her here.

"But we could not have known she had such knowledge, Elrond!" Aragorn weighed in now. "Nor did either you or Gandalf sense anything from her that would indicate she was a danger. Now that we know what she knows we can decide what to do, but we must be reasonable: it is hardly Halbarad's fault! He HAD to bring her with him. He could not have known!"

"Then YOU explain how else she could know such things and not be a threat!" Erestor rounded on him. "Her knowledge is disturbingly accurate and indeed she knows things she CAN NOT know!" Glorfindel was backing him up.

Gandalf was on the point of really losing his temper as Elrond told him, for the fourth time and at the top of his voice, that it was entirely his fault their questioning of her was delayed and it should have been done before the Council was held.

Penny was curled up in her chair, her breath quickening, realising this was all entirely her doing. She was most upset by the amount of flak that Halbarad was getting in all of this. Poor man. He didn't deserve the way _she_ had treated him let alone getting the blame for the situation she was in.

She was struggling to keep in the tears as the voices got louder and louder. For a moment she was entirely forgotten. Elrond was snarling at Halbarad again who was jabbing his finger back towards him and then towards Penny.

"WILL YOU ALL JUST _SHUT UP_!"

Stunned silence.

She had not realised quite how loud that was going to come out. She felt a moment of pure, unadulterated fear. She'd just screamed at six of the most important and powerful people in all Middle Earth and they were more than capable, any one of them, of snuffing her out in an instant.

Elrond's head snapped round to her, his anger clear upon his face.

She was standing, coming swiftly towards him, her cheeks wet.

"Goheno nin, hir nin. Goheno nin, Elrond," she said earnestly, desperately. She knew that what she was now doing and about to do was probably rude, presumptuous and incredibly stupid, but she was too distressed to care at this point.

She came straight up to him, standing between him and Halbarad. "Do NOT blame Halbarad!" She gestured to him as he stood behind her. "He treated me well and with patience when I was behaving like a complete madwoman. This is not his fault. Believe me, I did not say any of this to anger you. I said to to show you I _cannot know_ what I have just told you. How can I know it?"

She glanced at Gandalf, "Please tell me you understand what I am saying. There is no WAY I could know it. I read it. I read it in a book. This entire story. All of you in a book. THAT is how I know." She was gesturing to them all now, her tears falling fast while she desperately tried to make them understand. "I know about the Ring! I know about the Council! I know what was said and what was decided!"

She turned away from them now, walking back to her chair, almost talking to herself as she sobbed. "I don't know how I got here! I don't know why I am here! I don't WANT to be here!" She could feel her knees buckling as the full weight of the reality hit her and she sank to the floor in front of her. "I don't belong here. I.. I.." She sobbed, "I just want to go home!"

An uneasy and unspoken truce was reached by the questioners who, one by one, returned to their seats as they, quiet, confused and deeply suspicious, watched her weep on the floor.

"She does not want us to blame each other," Gandalf said quietly. "It is no-one's fault that she is here. She is lost. She was saying that she told us all that she did just now not to disturb us, even though she knew that that would be its effect, but rather to show, to try and prove, that what she was telling us about this book is true: for how else could she know such things? She..." He hesitated. "She just wants to go home. That feeling is very strong in her right now. Overwhelmingly so. That is why she weeps. Our anger distressed her greatly also."

Aragorn, leaning forward, his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped together in front of his mouth, exchanged a glance with Halbarad.

"Yes, but where IS home?" he said softly.

"A good question, my friend," murmured Gandalf.

Elrond, breathing hard, was struggling to control his fury still and said nothing. It was rare he lost his temper and he knew, as much for the others as himself, it was due to their frustration at not understanding her, the communication barrier, and the fact that she threw up more questions than she answered. He realised, however, that it was probably just as frustrating for her and very distressing too. That was obvious.

"Where is home?" Gandalf asked her.

Again he did so while projecting the question into her head. She heard him. She looked at him and the utter despair in her face made them gasp.

"Here. Arda."

Gandalf shook his head. That made no sense at all. He asked her again.

And got the same answer.

The others realised what she was saying.

"What is its name, the country where you live?"

She smiled sadly, "England."

Erestor got up and started scanning Elrond's bookshelves for a book of maps. She followed his movement with her gaze, realising what he was doing. She laughed ruefully. She looked at Elrond's raised eyebrow, his jaw still firm and hard.

"He won't find it. It won't be there," she said.

Erestor heard Gandalf's explanation of what she said but he continued searching regardless. She was right, though: he did not find it.

"How did you get here? Get to where Halbarad found you?"

She shrugged. She explained and mimed that she slept and woke up to find herself there.

Gasps of astonishment from them all then as Gandalf explained her answer.

Halbarad whispered, "That was why she was embarrassed that I had shown you her clothes. They were her sleeping garments."

"And it explains why she was barefoot," added Gandalf.

"But who would do such a thing to her! And why!" Aragorn was suddenly angry, as were they all as the thought hit them, though he was the first to voice it.

"They are worrying for you," Gandalf said to Penny, smiling kindly at her. "Who did this to you?"

Penny also smiled a little to know they were angry on her behalf, more touched than she could say though both Elrond and Gandalf felt it from her and told the others, but in reply she shrugged and shook her head and burst into tears once more. It was clear she did not know.

Halbarad, watching all of this, though they were no nearer to answers, was finding much of her previous behaviour towards him was now explained. He was pale with fury at the idea that someone had done that to her: dumped her miles from home, in the wet without suitable clothing, and with wolves, Nazgûl and Eru knew what else abroad. If he ever found them he would tear them to pieces. Looking at the expressions of those round him he knew he was not alone in thinking this either.

"What is it about her that is familiar?" Gandalf was regarding her closely as he murmured to himself. "She has an age to her, and yet she is no age at all."

Elrond looked at him. Gandalf knew Elrond had sensed something odd from her also.

He turned to Penny, projecting his question to her as he spoke, "Explain to us, where is this place that is in Arda but on no map we possess?"

She looked at him sadly once more and shook her head. She tapped her temple again.

"Try, Pen-ii. Tell us. It cannot be any more strange than anything else you have told us so far."

He did not project this to her but she understood he was asking her to continue irrespective of how insane it would sound.

And it was going to sound bloody insane. That was for sure.

She sighed, dried her eyes and considered for a moment. She shook her head, looked at them all to check they were watching her and began.

The floor was tiled. She dragged a finger along a line between the tiles on the floor that ran in front of her from right to left. She looked up at them, saw nods, and continued.

She pointed to the far right of the line. She mimed singing and said, "Eru, Valar, Maia." She moved her finger along a bit. "Eldar." She mimed yawning and stretching. "Eldar to Valinor." She looked up to check they were following. They were. She ran her finger along the line some way and said, "The Silmarillion."

All six exchanged a glance and Gandalf interrupted her. "You know The Silmarillion?"

She nodded. They were astonished. Even more so when she added, "And the Valaquenta."

She continued, dragging her finger once more over that section of the line, saying, "Morgoth, Feanor, Silmarils, Turin, Tuor, Beren." She lowered her hand to indicate falling, "Nargothrond, Doriath, Gondolin."

She glanced up to Glorfindel who nodded, his face grim suddenly.

She pointed at the line. "Elros and Elrond." She looked at Elrond as she said his name.

She moved her finger along, "Eriador. Celebrimbor. Rings." She indicated this with the fingers of one hand round a finger of the other once more. She held up the relevant number of fingers each time as she said, "Seven for the dwarves. Nine for the edain."

She paused. "Three for the Eldar." She glanced at Gandalf. "Narya, Vilya and Nenya."

His eyebrows shot up and he silently projected to her.

/Do you know who wears them? All three/

She nodded.

Gandalf spoke silently, projecting what he had just learnt to Elrond whose jaw stiffened. Penny continued.

"Sauron made the One."

She looked at them. Yup, they were following her. Good.

"Numenor. Sauron. Pharazon." Again the falling hand, "Numenor." She made a quick horizontal movement to indicate 'gone'. Her finger moved further on the line.

"Elendil. Gondor and Arnor. Battle of the Last Alliance. Isildur. Ring from Sauron." Again the cutting motion and the ring sign.

She hesitated. She drew her finger along so it was now right in front of her, exactly in the middle of the line. "Now," she said. "Here, today." She pointed at the floor. Then she pointed at all of them.

She looked at Gandalf. He nodded, smiling.

"We understand. Continue," he said.

She hesitated once more. They could see fear flash across her face. She took a breath.

Then they watched in astonishment and increasing disbelief as she dragged her finger along the line, past the time of 'now' till it was at the far end of the left side of the line.

She looked up at them, keeping her finger there while she pointed to herself.

"Me. England."

She pointed at the middle point once more, at all of them, and made the book sign. Then at the left end point again, at herself, and then she 'read' her open palms as if reading a book.

"She is insane," Elrond murmured.

Halbarad could hardly breathe. Aragorn's eyes were narrowed in thought and his brow furrowed in disbelief. Erestor and Glorfindel could not accept that they had understood her correctly. Only Gandalf, as ever, though his eyebrows were arched in confusion and surprise, allowed himself a smile.

"Now it becomes clear. This is why she feels so distant to me in time. This is why she reminds me of those from long ages past and yet it was utterly dissimilar at the same time."

The others stared at him.

"You cannot be serious, Mithrandir," Glorfindel spluttered. "You believe this nonsense!"

Gandalf looked at him, his eyes flashing slightly, "Have you an alternative explanation for how she knows what she knows, Glorfindel? If so, please share it with us. I, for one, would be most interested to hear it. What she has just told us fits. It fits absolutely with what we know of her and her erratic behaviour. She has read stories, myths from long ago that are so lost in the mists of time that no one believes they ever existed or occurred. Somehow she is here, with us now, in the middle of something she considered an absolute fabrication."

He turned to Halbarad now. "You understand her mistrust and fear now? She was trying to find any explanation for it all other than the truth. The truth would be too much for her to understand. This poor woman has probably thought she was going mad, possibly still thinks it. This is why she has heard of the Eldar and Periannath and yet acted so extremely when she saw them in the flesh. This explains her laughter at the Nazgûl. She hurt herself, Halbarad, I suspect, to see if it is was real. To see if she was hallucinating or dreaming. She could not dream such pain or such injuries. She could not dream of one of the Eldar when she saw them. She could not deny the reality of what she was surrounded by, then, and yet to her it was all a story. Can you not see how this fits?"

Halbarad nodded. It did indeed. It was too strange to contemplate, though.

"But how..? How did she get here?" he asked, his voice indicating his incredulity.

"We have asked her that already and she says she does not know and I for one believe her. Eru moves in strange ways and fate decrees we know not what at times. Were not Beren and Luthien sent back from death? Much that may seem strange to some has in fact occurred."

Elrond was shaking his head. He was not convinced. "It is too outlandish, Mithrandir. I cannot believe this."

Penny saw him and heard his tone of voice. She looked at Gandalf and pointed at Elrond. "He does not believe me?"

Gandalf shook his head. Penny looked at Elrond, then Gandalf.

"Tell him I know what happened yesterday. The Council. The meeting between you all. You, Elrond, Gloin, the Eldar from Thranduil, Boromir, Aragorn. I know."

Their eyes were wide once more. Having heard the names she had listed she could only be talking about one thing.

"What was that?" asked Elrond, looking at Gandalf sharply. "Was this about the Council?"

Gandalf nodded. "She says she knows what occurred."

"Impossible!" Elrond stared at her.

So, she told them.

Gandalf translated the sense of what he could understand from her: Gloin telling of the Nazgul visiting Erebor; Legolas telling of Smeagol's escape; Boromir and the dream; she told them that Aragorn had related his tale of Gollum's capture; that Bilbo had told them of how he got the Ring. She spoke of Saruman's treachery and even told them of the journey of the hobbits from the Shire including their meeting with Tom Bombadil. They were astounded and, as she talked, finally convinced.

Elrond still wavered, though. She was saying to him, "You chose nine." She held up her fingers. "Eight others to go with Maura and the One." Elrond checked he had understood with Gandalf and then nodded.

There was a beat. Penny counted them off on her fingers and they all gasped as she did so.

"Maura, Aragorn, Boromir, Legolas, Gimli, Ban, Mithrandir.."

She was thankful she had remembered Sam's real name. She stopped. They could see she knew more. She hesitated over the two remaining fingers. She smiled sadly and looked at Gandalf.

"He has not chosen them yet, but I know who they will be."

Gandalf smiled, nodded, and translated. Elrond was speechless. Halbarad glanced at Aragorn and spoke to him directly.

"That is why she reacted as she did at breakfast yesterday," he said quietly. "It was Boromir who nearly ran into her at the door." He looked at Gandalf. "How did she know it was Boromir?"

Gandalf asked her and she smiled. She pointed at her hip and made a sign as if she held something to her lips to blow.

"The horn of Gondor," Gandalf grinned. "Of course."

She sat down once again. She watched them all as they took all this in. She could feel the tears rising once more, but as much from relief now as distress. She was still frightened, but at least they all knew now. At least she had been able to explain. Even if she didn't understand herself what was going on. She looked at Halbarad who was regarding her with a soft, sad smile.

"Goheno nin, Halbarad. I behaved very badly, I know. But this life... Here... it is very different. I thought..." She laughed softly, "I thought you were tricking me. Playing a game. I thought you were pretending to be Halbarad, not the real Halbarad."

Halbarad threw a questioning glance to Gandalf.

"She is apologising. She knows now she did not behave well with you. But she did not understand what was happening. She thought someone was playing a joke with her. That is why she was so angry with you."

Halbarad nodded, turning to her smiling, as he said something to Gandalf. She heard Gandalf's voice in her head.

/_He understands. It is in the past_/

"Le hannon, Halbarad," she said quietly, smiling at him a little shyly.

Elrond spoke quietly. "So she knows of us and our deeds. It is most strange. She knows, then, of how this will turn out and what will come of it all."

All six looked at her, suddenly, as that realisation hit them.

She could see they were looking at her with a mixture of awe and astonishment. She furrowed her brows and looked at Gandalf.

"You know what will happen, do you not?" he asked her.

She gasped and looked down suddenly, nodding. 'No. I won't think about it. They can't ask me. I won't tell them. I can't. I can't. It's...'

"Yes, I do, Mithrandir," she said quietly, looking despairingly at him. "But I don't think I should say anything about it. To do so, to warn of the evil or relay the good that will occur might change what decisions are taken, it could affect everything. It is not my place to do that, and I wouldn't feel right doing it. Though..." she hesitated, "I want to desperately."

A silent tear rolled down her cheek and she looked at her lap.

"I know things I wish I didn't know, Gandalf. People will fall. And I know who they are." She looked up at him, "I will not willing say anything of what is going to happen. But if _you_ think I should I will. You and you alone, Mithrandir. If you wish to know, even if just for yourself I will tell you. You can then decide if you wish to tell anyone else or not. It is up to you."

Gandalf nodded. He understood her well enough. He turned to the others.

"She does indeed know. And it is a great burden to her. But she does not wish to change or alter any decision, even if she would be warning us against evils that will occur."

He held up his hand to stop the gasps and quiet protests.

"Now, now, I have to say she is right. I agree. It may be... It may be we will succeed. However small a hope we may have of it. By warning us and saving us from one evil on the way to the victory, a chain of events could be set in motion that could prevent that victory from coming to pass. I will not ask her. Nor would I have any of you ask. Further I insist that this fact, that she knows of us and of our futures, must be kept amongst ourselves and not made known to any others it may affect, and I include those accompanying Maura to Mordor in this. No good could come of such a thing were it known, of that I am certain."

While he had been speaking Penny had stood and gone to look out into the garden. She had not wanted to think about it, but talking to Gandalf, and knowing he was possibly telling them what she had said, meant she could not fight it any longer. He would die. Admittedly to be reborn, but the Fellowship would lose him. Boromir. She sobbed. Boromir! Brave Boromir. His attack on Frodo and his valiant death. And not just Boromir, either: Theoden, Hama, ...

Her breath caught in her throat suddenly, her heart thumping hard against her chest.

Halbarad! Dear God. Halbarad died at Pelennor Fields, didn't he?

She was wracking her brains, trying to remember. She didn't hear someone call her name so absorbed was she in her spinning thoughts. Knowing who they were was one thing, but this... knowing who would die was worse. Ten times worse. A million times worse and especially now she had met them. Boromir only for a moment, admittedly, but Halbarad...!

She clutched the doorframe, desperately trying to keep herself under control. She was choking back sobs, trying to steady her breathing.

A voice came behind her, saying her name gently. She turned, the tears streaming down her face. She smiled, forced herself to, and then threw her arms about Halbarad's neck and wept.

He, somewhat startled, held her gently, glancing over his shoulder to the others with a bemused expression on his face. Eventually she calmed and he brought her back to her seat. Elrond was looking at her more kindly than he had for the entire morning.

"Well, my dear, it would seem, however strange, we have our answer," he said to her. "I have to say I find it difficult to accept, but I have little choice given the extent of knowledge you have of things you could not possibly know otherwise. Now we must decide what we are to do with you." Penny was smiling politely but looked to Gandalf to explain.

/_He accepts your story, though it is strange. What do we do with you now?_/

She nodded. What would they do with her now?

Of course, if this was a Mary Sue, she'd head off with the Fellowship, bonking Leggy and saving Boz. She giggled. There were raised eyebrows then. She apologised.

"I am still getting used to being here. With you all. It is both an honour and very strange for me."

Gandalf nodded, grinning, and explained to the others who smiled. She realised that, once Gandalf left, she would be in difficulties once more.

"I would like to learn Sindarin," she said suddenly.

Gandalf was pleased. Elrond clearly guessed what she had said and smiled. He asked her, Gandalf projecting, what she knew of the language already. She looked a little sheepish and listed everything she could remember which wasn't much.

"Mostly names and place-names." Gandalf nodded and explained her words.

Then she said anything she could remember: 'farewell', 'well met', 'please', 'thank you', 'forgive me', 'do not speak', 'down!', 'my lord', 'my lady', 'husband', 'wife', 'elf', 'female elf', 'man', 'hobbit'. She was struggling then.

There were one or two other things she COULD remember but she wasn't going to say them. Not here. Not in all male company. Even in mixed company. For her to have come six thousand years and then admit she knew 'my love', 'my lover', 'I love you', 'your place or mine' and 'take your clothes off and get on the bed' would be... amusing for them? Embarrassing? Alarming? All three? It was a sad indication of the kind of fics she enjoyed too if that was nearly half the Sindarin she could come up with! She blushed.

The six exchanged a look as they saw her open her mouth as if to say more Sindarin, close it rapidly and then colour vividly but say nothing. Glorfindel and Halbarad smirked knowingly at each other and Aragorn, catching their look, grinned.

Elrond was asking if she could read and write. She nodded, but then added, "But not Tengwar."

He nodded and stood, moving to his desk and beckoning her to follow him. He presented her with a quill and parchment. She looked aghast.

"I will break it," she said, turning to Gandalf. "We don't use such things to write with anymore." Gandalf chuckled and indicated for her to try nonetheless. She struggled, scratching terribly, leaning over Elrond's desk as he watched her.

"Do you not have anything else?" she muttered, exasperated and throwing the quill to the desktop.

Elrond smiled and reached in a drawer for a box. He pulled off the lid and presented her with a box of charcoal.

She smiled. Much better. She wrote her own name. They watched, fascinated, as she wrote in this completely alien alphabet. She then wrote each of their names, spelling out each one and reading them for them once she was done. All six were crowded round the desk now, amazed.

Well, she could write. This was a start. Erestor was poring over what she had written, utterly absorbed in it. Elrond looked at him.

"Erestor? I want you to organise lessons for her. This afternoon and then every day."

"Certainly, my lord," he nodded. "I shall arrange it immediately." With a bow he left.

Penny still felt a little uneasy with them, but the atmosphere had changed. In the process of all this she had had to come to terms with what had happened to her, like it or not, insane or not. No looking back now.

She caught Halbarad's eye and he grinned at her. Well, at least they don't think I'm mad anymore. Well, no more than anyone usually does, at any rate.

Gandalf explained Elrond had asked for lessons to be organised for her and that she would stay in Rivendell for the time being. She turned to Elrond and bowed, smiling gratefully. Gandalf told them she was both moved and honoured to be allowed to stay in such a place and among such people. She was eternally in his debt.

Given the amount she'd angered and upset them that day she was now doing some spectacular crawling. They had to give her that.

* * *

Author's Note:

'/'and italics indicate silent speech projection to Penny from Gandalf. At all other times he speaks out loud as well as projecting. When the need for secrecy or privacy is paramount, though, he does not speak, only projects his thoughts/words into her head.

For anyone who is remotely interested I am reliably informed that the Sindarin for 'Your place or mine?' is "Bar lîn egor nîn?" and 'Take off your clothes and get on the bed!' is "Heltho a caitho erin i haust!" Well... you never know when it might come in useful, do you? ;)


	13. A Square Peg

**Chapter 13** - _"A Square Peg"_

Halbarad, Aragorn and Glorfindel walked Penny to the dining hall for lunch leaving Gandalf and Elrond debating what should be done with her.

Penny felt a little odd now that her story was known and understood. She was pleased, relieved even, but it was a bit weird knowing that they knew all about her now.

She could tell the three of them were glancing at her every now and then as they walked, no doubt in a mixture of astonishment and bemusement. She could hear them muttering to each other occasionally and looked up at one point to see Aragorn shaking his head as if in disbelief while Glorfindel cast a look in her direction.

She bridled. Then she scowled.

As the four turned a corner into another corridor and then started down a wide flight of steps towards the door of the dining hall, she heard Glorfindel whisper something to the other two. She glanced up to see him leaning in to Halbarad who was nodding, looking serious. Aragorn was listening intently. It was obvious they were talking about her.

She stopped, hands on hips and glaring at them as they carried on walking past her not even realising.

"That's it! You're just being RUDE now, you know that? And you great heroes and all! You should know better! It's not MY fault, you know. I can understand it freaks you out, but there isn't ANYTHING I can do about that! Imagine how I feel, for God's sake!"

The three had stopped and glanced at each other. Glorfindel's eyebrows were raised. Aragorn, on a higher step from him, was staring at her in astonishment. Halbarad, though, laughed.

"She has a temper on her. In fairness, though, we WERE talking about her and I believe she has guessed as much."

Aragorn looked impassive but his eyes were glinting with laughter as he said, "Given that we now know she knows precisely who she is talking to, I am amazed at her audacity." He bowed, "Forgive us, Pen-ii. You are right to scold us. We should not have forgot ourselves and been so rude."

She stared at him for a moment as if considering his apology, though in truth she had only understood 'goheno'. She nodded curtly.

"Right. Well. Just don't let it happen again, that's all."

She stomped past them and down towards the dining hall.

The three watched her, catching each other's glances. Halbarad was grinning.

"I don't know what she just said but she sounded just like my mother!"

Aragorn snorted, "I know what you mean."

Glorfindel whispered, "Sounded just like Elrond to me."

The three laughed.

Penny, assuming the laughter was at her expense, turned her head and scowled.

The three bit their lips and sniggered, holding their hands up to her as an apology. "Not about you, Pen-ii. Not about you," Halbarad was saying. He turned back to the other two, "A grown man of near seventy made to feel like I am no more than twelve! This is ridiculous!"

Chuckling they followed her down.

'Men! Bloody typical. Even sodding elves behaving like pillocks.' Still, Penny couldn't believe she had just done that. She had just told off Aragorn, Glorfindel and Halabarad. ARAGORN, GLORFINDEL and HALBARAD! The mind boggled. She was getting WAY too familiar. Not good. Even if they WERE being very ungentlemanly and talking behind her back to her face... or something like that.

She smirked as a thought flitted through her head: the sooner she learnt Sindarin the better. Then she could REALLY give them what for! She shook her head even as the thought came to her, though. No, she would have to learn how to behave. They might accept it once or twice as a joke, but there were limits. No one would have dared speak to three such warriors and heroes as she had just done, let alone a woman; and a woman who barely knew them no matter how much she may THINK she knew them from having read about them all so many times. She was going to have to learn to bite her tongue.

As she reached the dining hall she slowed. She was still nervous about large company, especially given those she knew would be there.

The three males, seeing her hesitate and better understanding it now, came up to her. Halbarad spoke gently to her and insisted she take his arm. He glanced at Aragorn and they both mutually decided they would take her to the end of a table and away from the general company. Glorfindel, bowing to her and taking her hand to kiss it, which flustered, embarrassed and thrilled her all at the same time, excused himself to go off and ensure Elrond's other guests and visitors were being looked after.

Just as the three sat down, the hobbits came over to join them, talking excitedly and all at once to Aragorn. They noticed Penny and bowed, greeting her and she returned their smiles and inclined her head.

Halbarad had felt her stiffen beside him, though, as they had appeared. He touched her arm and murmured to her, "Pen-ii, I know this is hard for you. But we know about you now. That must help a little, I would think. We will not judge you if you want to leave."

She didn't understand him, but guessed he was reassuring her and she smiled at him, grateful for his concern. In truth it WAS a relief, somehow, knowing that both Aragorn and Halbarad knew and, she presumed, would not blame her if she found it all too much to cope with. As a consequence it was all so much easier to deal with, strangely. She was actually able to eat and enjoy a meal for the first time since she had arrived. That was in spite the fact that she was sat opposite to Aragorn, next to Halbarad, within spitting distance of four famous hobbits and that the rest of the Fellowship and other 'well known persons' were also somewhere in the room.

Halbarad noticed and was glad.

After the meal there was a brief, silent, hand gestured debate between Halbarad and Penny. She made to leave and he, stopping her, looked questioningly at her as if to ask where she was going.

She pointed and then made a rubbing motion of her skirts between her hands as if washing. She needed to wash the elvish undershift.

He shook his head, taking her hand to show the cuts and bruises, healing but still visible.

She smiled gratefully and, placing her hand on his, tried to reassure him. "I'll be fine. I promise."

He moved his finger to point to both himself and her alternately several times. He clearly meant 'we'. Then he gestured in the direction she had pointed.

She flushed and shook her head vehemently. There was no way he was coming with her to watch her wash an undershift. She strongly suspected, rightly, that it would be the Middle Earth equivalent of him watching her wash her knickers.

He nodded, accepting her refusal. "Then I will make sure someone comes with you," he said. She didn't understand. He shook his head and smiled. "Don't worry. Go." He would send someone to her room or to catch up with her.

All six of Penny's inquisitors had been thrown a little, to say the least, by what had occurred that morning. It beggared belief and yet there was no other explanation that would fit her knowledge of the unknowable and her behaviour thus far. There was no doubt in any of their minds that her tale, however bizarre and outlandish, was indeed true.

All six, and Aragorn, Gandalf and Elrond in particular, tried not to think about the fact that she knew the outcome of all the efforts they had made thus far and were about to put into motion. All held on to the idea that the story she had read had been worth telling for the right reasons. Not because in the end hope utterly failed them and darkness fell.

Gandalf was especially keen to talk to her more given that he could now, on a basic level at least, understand her and throw his mind to her. Still he knew he was getting only an outline of whatever she said and he had to keep his thoughts to her fairly simple. But it was enough. It had certainly been more than enough that morning.

He grinned. He was pleased his immediate instinct and reading of her had been proved right. There was a small part of him that was terribly proud, and yet utterly unsurprised, that these events he was part of were as significant as he had always known them to be. He was not at all shocked to learn that she knew of hobbits, and the names of the five in Rivendell in particular. He had always known hobbits would have an important part to play in all this.

A slow, warm smile spread across his face as he chewed at the end of his pipe while Elrond made a show of standing by the open door to the garden in an attempt to get away from the tobacco smoke.

The person Halbarad sent to Penny was the same female elf who had showed her to her chambers that first evening in Rivendell. It was now generally known in Rivendell that the human female who had arrived with Halbarad had been found by him, lost and far from home, and that she spoke neither Sindarin or Westron. So the elleth kept things simple and used lots of hand gestures.

Penny quickly learnt her name was Mireth. She had been surprised by Penny bringing soap with her but had not objected. She had led Penny to her own chambers to collect some washing she had to do so they might do it together and then they walked through the gates and the trees down to the river.

Halbarad had made a point of showing Penny the washing stoop the day before so that she could go there whenever she felt she needed to. Penny was grateful he had done so, but even more grateful he had sent someone to keep her company.

As they walked Mireth talked. Penny did not understand any of it, and Mireth knew this would be the case, but Penny found it pleasant all the same. It was relaxing to have someone chatter at you and feel at ease enough with you to do so.

"You shall have to teach me," she said.

Mireth looked puzzled. Penny pointed at her tongue, made a talking sign, then pointed to Mireth and then herself. Mireth nodded, clearly delighted with this idea.

So then Penny found herself being told the names of things, most of which she instantly forgot. She laughed, holding her head as if she had a headache.

"Too much, Mireth! Too much! I'll never remember it all!" and Mireth, guessing her meaning, laughed also.

She stopped her stream of Sindarin vocabulary and focused on just a few things. So Penny learnt 'tree', 'grass', 'river', 'dress', 'slipper or shoe' and 'undershift'. Oh, and 'soap'. She repeated them over and again. Then, on the way back from the river, Mireth tested her by pointing at them and looking at Penny with her eyebrows raised. Penny, laughing, would repeat the words and Mireth, hugely pleased by her student's first lesson, grinned.

As they passed through the gate and came to the halls once more an elf came down the stairs towards them. He called Mireth and said something to her, indicating Penny as he did so. Mireth nodded and turned to Penny, "They have organised a Sindarin lesson for you. We will deal with these," she indicated the wet clothes in the basket she was holding, "Then I will take you to Erestor's study."

Penny nodded. She had understood 'Sindarin' and 'Erestor' and had guessed the rest.

Erestor had been suggested by Elrond and, even if he had not, he would have put himself forward to teach her himself. Firstly, he was fascinated by the idea of learning or getting to at least know some of her language. The alphabet she used was most intriguing. Secondly he, like Elrond, felt that intimate contact should be limited to only a few for the time being and that it would be better if someone who knew her situation be the one to teach her. Erestor was, then, the obvious choice as busy as he was. Still it was unlikely she would be able to cope with much more than half an hour each day and he could spare that. Or, at least, he would just HAVE to spare it.

They went to Mireth's room first and spread her clothes on an airer. Then Mireth came to Penny's chambers. Penny just hung the undershift over the back of a chair.

"I will get you a clothes airer. There will be a spare one around somewhere I am sure," said Mireth. She smiled and waved her hands at Penny as if to say 'Never mind' at Penny's puzzled incomprehension.

She led her through corridors to Erestor's study and stopped, indicating his door. She turned to go.

Penny called after her, "Mireth?" The elleth turned back to her. "Le hannon." Mireth nodded, grinning, and went off in the direction they had just come. Penny turned back to the door, took a deep breath and knocked.

Not knowing if the response she had heard was a 'come in' or a 'wait a moment' she hesitated. Should she knock again? Should she go in? Bloody brilliant! First Sindarin lesson and she couldn't even get through the sodding door!

She sighed. This was ridiculous.

She knocked again, tentatively.

The door was pulled open and Erestor, repeating his response to the first knock, motioned her to come in.

Okay. So she would have to try and remember that that meant 'come in'. Not 'please dither about outside my door like a complete idiot'.

Erestor's study was about half the size of Elrond's, though still large. All four walls were lined with bookcases and books. There was, as in Elrond's room, a large door that opened out into the gardens. A desk was to one side and Erestor motioned for Penny to sit.

He said something as he did so. One word. He repeated it. He made a sitting motion and repeated the word a third time. She nodded and said the same word herself.

'Okay. We're learning, I guess. Trick'll be remembering all this.' Erestor nodded and smiled.

On the desk was a slate and a piece of chalk. Erestor now took up a position opposite her where a blackboard was resting on an easel. He studied her for a few moments and then he began. With the alphabet.

Penny groaned inwardly. He had to be joking, didn't he? She was never going to remember this. No way. No way on earth.

She looked at him, scribbling letters on the board and did her best to copy them on the slate in front of her as he directed, repeating their sounds after him. Why couldn't she have a bloody piece of paper? Something she could carry around with her? Something she could then re-read in her own time? Oh, God! This was just daft!

Erestor turned to see she was scowling at him. He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Anything the matter, Pen-ii?"

She pointed to the slate. She made a writing motion. He looked puzzled.

She sighed. "Pen and paper. Can't be that difficult, surely?"

She made the writing motion again. He came over to her and pointed at the slate. She shook her head.

"Paper."

She looked about her and saw some scrolls and parchments on a table behind her. She pointed. "Paper."

Erestor looked at what she was pointing at. He snorted.

"Parchment! Are you mad? I am not wasting paper on lessons! It is expensive and difficult to make and it cannot be wasted on such things. You can use slate and your memory like everyone else. When I think you are ready you can learn to use a quill and then and only then will you get parchment. And sparingly too." He turned back to the blackboard, "Paper indeed!"

Penny opened her mouth and then closed it again. Clearly what she had suggested and asked for was utterly preposterous judging from his reaction. She mentally kicked herself. Paper was a luxury, no doubt, not the wasted resource of her time.

She felt a sinking feeling. This was going to make it ten times harder to learn this bloody language. She couldn't write anything or keep anything written. It would all be in her head or on a slate that would be wiped clean for the next lesson. This was hopeless. She'd never learn to communicate. She sighed, picking up her chalk and carried on copying the letters and repeating their sounds.

Erestor did not overtask her. She started with six letters first of all and was given a word to learn that began with each one. Even if she didn't know what the word meant, it would at least help her to remember the sound.

He glanced at the candle burning near him. The wax had melted down to near the half-hour mark. He stopped and inspected her slate.

Her letter forming was neat. This was good. He just hoped she would remember it. He handed it back to her, smiling.

"Very good, Pen-ii. Well done."

She was not the first non-speaker he had taught, nor would she be the last he suspected. He was well practised at this.

He turned to the bookshelf nearest them and scanned along a high shelf till he found what he was looking for. A Sindarin reader. He handed it to her, leaning over the desk beside her as he opened it for her at the first page: an alphabet and one word written next to each letter. He read the first six lines for her, saying the letter's sound and then the word that went with it.

She realised this was exactly the lesson he had just given her. He was reading the same words he had been giving her for each letter as she had copied them out several times each. She smiled. She picked up the book and waved it at him.

"Can I keep this? Is this for me to take away with me, to study?"

He guessed her meaning from the expression on her face and the hand gestures she was using. He nodded. She grinned.

Okay. Not perfect, but a lot better. Much better in fact. It would be hard, but who knew how long she would be stuck here and she would just have to work at it and _do_ this. No matter how long it took.

It was still early in the afternoon when her first lesson finished. Her book under her arm and muttering the new words she had learnt to herself, Penny decided to wander in the gardens for a bit. She wondered where Halbarad was. In fact she wondered what on earth would happen now, and if any decision had been reached about what they would do with her. They had far more important things to worry about than her. She was just an unwanted pain in the backside, a problem they could have all done without. She was fairly certain of that. Not for the first time she felt how irksome she must be for them.

She had barely stepped out into the gardens when she saw Gandalf walking towards the halls. He looked up on seeing her and smiled.

"Pen-ii. I am glad I found you: Halbarad was looking for you." He projected the last part of his sentence.

"Me?"

He nodded and indicated round a corner where the path led to the main gate. She nodded and headed off that way, Gandalf coming with her now that he had run into her since he had not been going anywhere in particular just then.

Halbarad was on his horse, Aragorn beside him and about to climb in the saddle. There were several elves, also on horseback, including Glorfindel, Elladan and Elrohir. She hadn't met Elrohir yet. Halbarad hadn't seen her, as he was deep in conversation with an elf beside him, but Aragorn smiled at her, saying her name and nodding, before he put his foot in the stirrup and swung his other leg up and over Roheryn's rump.

For a moment Penny was baffled. They were leaving? Halbarad was going? But... but... he had only just got here. A wave of panic. He was leaving her alone amongst them all! Shit! She'd not realised quite how dependant she had become on his being around. Bloody ridiculous of her. Just a few days ago he was some stinking, ignorant, arsewipe and NOW she didn't want to lose sight of him. She was kicking herself. She was being utterly stupid.

Elladan, seeing her, and not having had an opportunity thus far to greet her properly since that night he had spent with her in the woods, moved his horse forward and inclined his head to her.

"Pen-ii. Mae govannen."

She returned his greeting as Gandalf said in her head/_He has been told. He deserved an explanation of your reaction to him. His brother also knows since nothing can be told to one without the other knowing. Elrond told them_./

Penny nodded. "Le hannon, Mithrandir."

Even as she said this, an elf who was the near spitting image of Elladan moved his horse to stand beside his brother. He smiled at Penny and, murmuring her name, he greeted her with a slow smile.

Something about him seemed softer, gentler than his brother. Penny strongly suspected he would not have thrown forty fits over her using his comb and that, if he'd felt the need to wash it, he would have done so more discretely than Elladan had done. 'Less like his father,' Penny concluded. Though how or why she came to such a conclusion she was not sure. Penny bowed.

"Mae govannen, Elrohir. I am honoured."

Mithrandir, rather than translating, whispered the Sindarin for it in her ear. She repeated it hesitantly and blushing slightly. Elrohir grinned and acknowledged what she had said with an incline of his head.

The horses were turning to the gate and the twins moved away from her. Aragorn was off through the gate already following two other elves. As Halbarad turned his horse he saw her at last. He smiled.

"Pen-ii! Thank you for finding her, Mithrandir." He walked his horse to her and looked down at her. "I wanted to say farewell."

She understood 'navaer'. Why the bloody hell did she feel tears come into her eyes? She was getting pretty damn cross with herself.

"Navaer, Halbarad."

She wanted to ask if he was coming back. If she would see him ever again. If.. oh, God.. if this was IT and he was off into the wilds of Eriador till he got the message to round up the Dúnedain and head South to Rohan. In which case she really _would_ never see him again. She was NOT going to cry, dammit.

She clenched her fists behind her back where neither he nor Mithrandir could seem them and dug her nails into her palms. She tried to sound breezy as she spoke.

"It's a shame. I was going to show off the Sindarin I learnt today." She waved her reader at him.

Before Mithrandir could explain she pointed at a tree. "Galadh," she said. Halbarad grinned at her.

Then she suddenly realised. She turned wide-eyed to Gandalf and he looked at her, clearly sensing she was remembering something, that she knew something.

"They are going out to look for the Nazgûl, aren't they?" Gandalf nodded.

She turned back to Halbarad and he smiled, though his face was grim having heard what she had said and guessed at its meaning. He had to go. He nodded and kicked his horse gently into a trot and rode towards the gate to catch up with the others, already out of sight through the trees.

"Halbarad!"

She ran after him. She really didn't know if he would be coming back with Aragorn and the twins or not. 'DON'T think about it. Don't bloody THINK about it you silly cow!' She refused to burst into tears. He stopped as she came level with his knee and looked up at him. She held her hand out to him and he took it.

"Le hannon. Le hannon for everything. I didn't deserve the way you put up with me. I was dreadful to you. I am sorry. Just..."

It was pointless saying it. She knew. But she couldn't help herself.

"Be careful."

A sudden flash of inspiration made her add, "May Elbereth protect you." That sounded suitably 'Middle Earthian' and the right kind of thing to say at such a moment.

Halbarad nodded, smiled, squeezed her hand and then said "Navaer Pen-ii" before riding out of the gates of Imladris.

Penny caught the sob in her throat so he wouldn't hear it.

* * *

Author's Note: Okay. I 'fess up. BIG boo-boo and I'm amazed no-one spotted it. sigh Too late to change it now 'cos it would mean rewriting the last three chapters. The canon is that Aragorn and the twins leave to look for the Nazgul (with others, and others are sent out before them too) _straight after_ the Council.

If I had remembered I would have had them question Penny before the Council, but wanted them to do it afterwards and misremembered when Aragorn left. Thought it was the next day or a few days afterwards. But no. It's there. First page of "The Ring Goes South". sigh Well, too late now. And the first major AU mistake and you all have my sincere apologies. hangs head Serves me right for presuming I remembered correctly rather than assuming I was wrong and double-checking first (you would have thought I'd have learnt from experience by now to not trust myself, wouldn't you?). Let this be a lesson to us all. Principally me.

Ahem

Yes. Well.

Carry on. grin

EDIT – Having had three hours sleep last night.. (yes that _is_ my excuse and yes I _am_ sticking to it so you can all stop looking at me like that) ..my brain was even more scrambled than usual when I finished this chapter this afternoon. Brego! Egad! The horrors! WHAT WAS I THINKING? I mean, I _love_ the movies, but... ack! sigh Suitably changed to the _actual_ name of Aragorn's horse. gets out sackcloth and ashes Thank you to the many who pointed it out. grin


	14. The Complete Set

**Chapter 14** _- "The Complete Set"_

Penny stood there for a few moments struggling to keep her emotions under control. Even if she _did_ never see him again, there was still some time before he...

'Oh, and what! And that makes it alright does it! Stupid bloody woman!'

She resolved then and there, in that very instant, that she was not going to get to know Boromir. She would not be able to cope with it. Not at all. Just this was bad enough.

She sighed. As she turned she realised Gandalf was still there, leaning on his staff and watching her with a knowing gaze and kind eyes. He held out a hand to her and she walked towards him. As she drew alongside him he turned to walk beside her.

"It must be hard for you, to have such knowledge." He spoke quietly, his tone gentle.

She nodded.

"It must be very strange for you to walk among us." Again she nodded.

She stopped, turning to look at him. "Mithrandir... Am I doing the right thing? Not saying anything? I.. There are people who will die, Mithrandir. I find it difficult knowing them, meeting them, or knowing about them."

Gandalf regarded her seriously for a moment. "Pen-ii, it will not be easy. You must understand that I, Lady Galadriel, even Lord Elrond, can have insights into what might be. It is not dissimilar from the knowledge you now possess. You are young, and a mortal, and unused to such a burden. It will be hard for you. But yes, it was the right decision. As you said, were it made known the changes people may then make could have disastrous effects. This is war. This is serious. There will be loss. And everyone involved knows that. That sacrifice, though terrible, will be worth it if we succeed. The alternative will be darkness, terror beyond imagination."

As he spoke and she heard his voice in her head, she could also sense what he was talking of. She could feel his earnestness, his seriousness, his immeasurable patience, wisdom and mercy.

Then, as he spoke of the darkness, she could feel a terror she had never known within her. The same sheer bloody fear you feel in the middle of a nightmare. When that black nameless thing is behind you and you can feel it, hear it, sense it and you daren't turn round to look but just keep running, running, but it's catching up with you, about to grab hold of you...

It faded as Gandalf smiled sadly and continued. "Besides. Even if those of whose fates you know were told what would occur it would not stop them. If they fall in battle and are warriors all, as I suspect may be the case, then do not think that fear of death would stop them nor even knowledge of certain death. They would still fight. For honour and glory. For King and country. For truth and right. To defeat evil and darkness. You know that."

She nodded, her eyes wet with tears. Boromir would still defend the hobbits from the uruks. Halbarad would not be stopped from joining the Dúnedain in battle. Nor Háma from defending his people and his homeland at Helm's Deep. Indeed, it would be shameful for them not to fight. Unthinkable and very wrong to try and stop them. The same for Theoden. For Theodred. For Faramir, though injured not killed. Even Merry and Pippin would prove their courage and nobility through the injuries they would suffer. As would Frodo. Poor nine-fingered Frodo.

She shook her head. Now she was here, within it and it was real, it seemed even more dreadful. What these people would go through, were prepared to go through, the cost that would be told upon them. It was extraordinary. In that moment Penny felt overwhelmed in pride and awe. They were capable of a strength of will, a sense of honour and bravery that she doubted she could even find in her little finger. _So_ damn impressive.

They fell silent for a while.

Penny asked, "Was a decision made? About me?"

"Yes. You are to stay here for the meantime."

Was that it? No detail, no explanation? She looked at him, a little peeved.

He sensed her irritation. "What more would you have us do, Pen-ii? We do not know you. You know far too much for us to allow you to leave us. And where would you go? Besides these are dangerous times for you to be able to travel. We are safe enough here in the valley of Imladris, for the time being at least, but out there..." He indicated vaguely around him. "Out there it is very dangerous indeed. Or did your book not tell you that?"

She glanced at him. He wasn't angry. His tone was questioning, not berating. She nodded, "Yes, it did. And till you know the fate of the Nazgûl nothing can happen."

He nodded, his eyes twinkling, "Though I am sure you could tell me in an instant where they are and what has happened." She did not return his smile. Just nodded sadly. "Do not fear, Pen-ii. I would not ask. I would not put you in such a position."

"Le hannon."

"How was your lesson? With Erestor?"

She sighed. "It is hard. Very hard. I am not good with languages at all. And where I come from we write everything down and do not rely on our memories so much. I am not used to learning by rote. I asked for paper and Erestor thought I was bonkers."

Gandalf laughed. "Paper is important, Pen-ii. He would not want to use it wastefully. Once you have some competence you may be allowed some. Indeed, I am sure he will want to learn your alphabet and language as much as he will want to teach you Sindarin and for that either you or he will write it all down no doubt. Erestor is very learned and bookish."

Penny nodded. She was not getting everything Gandalf was saying, but enough. Enough that they could conduct a conversation and more or less understand each other.

She was grateful. Other than the questioning this was probably the most she had spoken to someone, actually had mutual communication with someone, for days. That hadn't helped with her sense of isolation and losing the plot completely. She suspected that was one, small reason why she had felt so much better after the questioning: she had managed to communicate with someone at last! It was why she was so bloody determined to crack this Sindarin thing. Even if it killed her. Which, she suspected, was extremely possible given how crap she was at things like this. She'd studied Spanish for three years and could just about count to twenty and ask for a beer and that was it! She sighed.

Gandalf was talking again. "One very important thing, Pen-ii. I hope my instinct is right since I got the impression from some of the things you said this morning that I perhaps do not need to say this, but I will do so nevertheless. You are to say nothing to anyone. Both about your situation and the knowledge you possess. In particular your knowledge of the Ring. To _anyone_. Even if they are one of those who will travel with Maura. I must impress the importance of this upon you."

Penny nodded. "You didn't need to tell me that, Mithrandir."

"I know. But Elrond was worried."

They had reached a small tended garden by the side of the main hall. There was a bench beside a fountain around which the path wound and then continued on towards the steps up to the main door of the building. Gandalf sat and motioned her to sit beside him. He asked her about her age, if she had family, though he did not ask her too much about her life, her lifestyle, or what it was like where she came from. It was as if he really didn't want to know too much about life in the future. He was surprised that she was not married.

"But by your age most human females would be married and with children."

She laughed, "Not where I come from! Marriage? Kids!" She shuddered. "Not bloody likely!"

"You do not wish to marry?" His eyebrows had met his hairline in his astonishment.

"Well... maybe one day. But not yet. Too young to settle down!"

There was a stunned silence.

"Too young? You are twenty-three! How much longer would you wait?"

She shrugged, laughing.

Before she could reply Mireth appeared round the corner of the building and, spotting her, called her name and came running over, smiling. She bowed as she approached with a murmured "Mithrandir" before beaming at Penny.

"Pen-ii, you have to come and be measured. They are going to make some clothes for you since you are to be here with us a little while and you have absolutely nothing of your own, you poor dear. Come," and she held her hand out to her.

Penny stood to take it, though she was utterly mystified as to what was happening. She looked to Gandalf who smiled.

"Elrond has ordered clothes for you. You need to be measured."

Penny gasped. "Tell him I am most honoured and touched." Gandalf nodded, smiling, as Mireth pulled Penny away to the halls.

It was actually a small room on the ground floor that Mireth took Penny to. As she entered she could see it was like a workroom, with a long large table in its centre and the walls were lined with bolts of material of every colour and sort. No patterned materials. All plain colours, but a large variety: pink, red, browns of various kinds, three kinds of blue, several greens, yellow, even orange. There was a large chest of drawers to one side which had countless tiny drawers within it which Penny was later to discover was full of buttons of every description, threads, buckles, ribbons and strings. There were several large pairs of scissors on the central table but to Penny they looked more like garden shears in a way. They comprised of two blades, joined at the handles by a hoop, which was squeezed together to get the blades to cut against each other.

There were three elleths in the room, all seated on stools or at tables, and sewing. One was embroidering the sleeve of a tunic, the other two were hand-sewing together pieces of possibly a dress given the size of the pieces but she couldn't be sure. At the far end of the room Penny could see an open door through which many other female-elves were visible sitting, sewing and chattering away. Someone in the far room was singing quietly as they worked.

Penny smiled shyly and returned the murmured greeting of the three elleths in the room as Mireth introduced her. The one doing the embroidery, Eleniel, had already started rummaging in a small wicker basket on the little table in front of her as soon as she had seen them come in. She eventually found what she was looking for: a tape measure. It seemed to be made of a long piece of leather, light in colour and very thin, with markings on it. She stood and beckoned Penny over to her. As she took the measurements she called them out over her shoulder and another of the elves wrote them down on a slate with chalk.

Once they were done, Eleniel disappeared into the back room and returned a little while later with a dress and undershift slung over her shoulder. She proffered them to Penny who took them muttering her thanks. Then Penny realised they were all looking at her. Mireth made an encouraging movement at her.

They wanted her to put them on now! Undress in front of _them_: these tall, willowy, no doubt physically perfect beings. Yeah _right_! She felt herself blushing a little.

The elves laughed softly and Eleniel then gestured to another door, closed and in a side wall. Penny nodded and opened it to find it was a little store room, containing yet more material, piles of leather skins, and boxes full of she knew not what.

She quickly undressed and put on the new clothes. The undershift fitted very well, as did the light blue dress, but they were long since they had clearly been made to fit an elf, not a human. She came out, hitching her skirts so she did not tread on them, to find Eleniel was gesturing to a chair. She made to sit and there was more laughter, though gentle, and she realised they wanted her to stand on it. The bottom of the dress and shift were folded at the right length, to the ankle bone, and Eleniel quickly made a few stiches at the spot to keep the folded material in place and so mark the length. She nodded and smiled and gestured back to the store room.

"So I take this off?" Penny made 'taking off' gestures and hoped they understood her. They did. And she was right.

As Mireth grinned and chattered to her as they made their way back down the corridors, Penny couldn't help but feel guilty. She felt highly embarrassed that those elleths would be slaving away _hand-stitching_ a dress for her. Or possibly more than one, she didn't know. They had clearly asked her if she could sew and she, feeling a little shameful, had had to admit she couldn't. She had no bloody clue. Her granny could. A little. But even she mainly knitted and that was all.

There had been murmurs of astonishment from them all as she had shook her head. Mireth had said something to her, motioning between them, then pointing to Penny, her eye and making sewing motions. Penny presumed she'd been saying she would teach her. She had nodded but she suspected it would be an unmitigated disaster.

There was a lot she was going to have to learn. She remembered Halbarad and the rabbit. The offal at Bree. There were basic skills and aspects of life that would be completely alien to her even if just two or three generations back from her they would have been everyday.

She mulled over all this and then a sudden panic gripped her as a thought struck her. What about...? Oh SHIT! What was she going to do when...? She kicked herself for never having asked her grandmother what_ she_ had done every month. Did elves even get them? Given they could control their breeding, probably not. Assuming she was still on the same cycle she had been before she arrived here she had a week on her hands to work something out... Or at least she hoped she did. How the bloody hell was she going to ask about this one? Get Gandalf to translate for her? NO BLOODY WAY! She would have to try and talk to Mireth. How? She mentally groaned. No sooner did she find her feet, it seemed, something would come along and turn everything upside down.

Dusk had fallen. Elves walked past them, slowly lighting the torches already in their wall-brackets. Penny realised Mireth was heading towards the dining hall. She stopped her, showing her her book.

"I'll take this to my room, first, I think. Don't want it covered in wine or gravy. Erestor wouldn't be impressed I don't think."

Mireth nodded, realising what she was saying, and they turned together to head towards the staircase to the upper floors. Mireth held out her hand for the book and, as they walked, Penny pointed out the first six lines of the alphabet, repeating the letters and words she had been taught. Already she had misremembered one because Mireth had to correct her. She sighed. Mireth smiled encouragingly at her and then pointed to her dress and then her shoes, getting Penny to repeat at least some of the words she had taught her that afternoon. She beamed as Penny got them right. Eventually they reached her room, now dark. Penny placed the book on a dresser by the door and then the two headed off to eat.

This was the first time that Penny had been to the dining hall without Halbarad or Aragorn around to keep an eye on her and she felt a little nervous. Mireth took her to sit right amongst the elves and one of them was Eleniel the seamstress who moved up a little so there was space for Penny between her and Mireth. It became clear she and Mireth were friends.

Everywhere Penny looked there were gorgeous features, high cheekbones, grey or grey-green eyes, and long flowing hair. The men were utterly stunning: broad shoulders, lithe and strong. The women were beautiful in a way that made your breath stop. Penny felt very small, desperately unattractive and rather useless sat amongst them all. She looked up to see Gandalf and the hobbits on the other side of the room. Pippin caught her eye and nodded and waved with a grin. She smiled back.

Whatever the hell they were eating tonight Penny was deeply suspicious of it. On one platter was clearly a pile of whole, stuffed hearts. Liver, kidneys and onions on another. Then there was something indefinable: it looked liverish but was a lot paler, the colour of chicken almost, and seemed squidgier somehow since she watched as an elf, with the utmost delicacy and poise, picked some up with a piece of bread and the bread had sliced through the meat as if it were soft butter.

Penny just helped herself to vegetables.

Mireth was trying to encourage some of the meat on her but she, as politely as she could, refused. She pointed to the pale pieces of meat.

"What _is_ that?"

Quite why this was funny she had no idea but the elves round her who had seen what she had pointed to started giggling. She looked to Mireth who was both trying not to laugh and scowl at her friends at the same time.

Eleniel whispered something in Penny's ear which, of course, Penny didn't understand at all. Mireth, meanwhile, turned to the others and said something sharply which made them all look suitable shamefaced, murmur something that sounded like 'goheno' in Penny's direction and get on with their meal quietly.

Meanwhile Penny was looking at the meat wondering what on earth this was all about. They were pale ovals, sliced in half...

'Wait a minute: ovals? Oh no. No. No way. You don't eat THOSE... Do you? Oh my GOD!'

Penny could feel herself going red as a beetroot. She glanced at Mireth who, realising she'd guessed, grinned and nodded. She caught Eleniel's eye who smirked and went a little pink.

"They're very good. Try some," Mireth said, scooping up some with a serving spoon to put on her plate but offering it to Penny first.

Penny waved her hands in horror. "No. No, bloody way. No thanks. I'll stick to veggies, thanks." Mireth shrugged and tucked in.

What had she been saying to herself earlier about getting used to things? All she needed now was to be served brain and tripe and it could well put her off meat for life. I mean, there's 'using all parts of the animal' and then there's 'a step too far', frankly. Testicles! Bloody TESTICLES! She shook her head. She couldn't get used to this AT ALL.

After the meal Penny went with the elves she had shared her meal with to the hall of Fire. Bilbo was here once again, she noted, and soon a hobbit huddle was formed against one wall around him as they listened to the songs being sung and the poems recited. Mireth, meanwhile, was introducing Penny to various elves in the room. Penny promptly forgot every name she was told and she had the distinct feeling that several of the elves were less than impressed with her. Whether it was her in particular or humans in general she had no idea.

The dwarves were here and, as Mireth sat her on a bench and then went off to fetch two cups of wine for them, Penny studied them closely. Of the five it was obvious which one was Glóin with his long white beard, and there seemed to be one that he spoke most to. She had noticed it whenever she had seen them previously. She wondered, not for the first time, if that was Gimli.

Scanning the room she quickly found Boromir once more. He was in conversation with Elrond, sipping from a cup as he did so. She noticed he had shaved and was in clean clothes. No doubt had had a bath too. He was not as tall as Aragorn but still six foot or very nearly, about the same height as Halbarad. And strong. That was obvious. Well built and muscular. But then all the males, human and elf, seemed to be. No doubt all the physical labour of life here, let alone the training they all did with weapons.

Mireth was in conversation with a group of elves on the far side of the room. Eleniel was amongst them. Penny could see Mireth had two cups in her hand so she had clearly been waylaid on her way back to her. The elves were dark-haired except for three blonds who were dressed all in greens and browns. The Mirkwood elves.

Penny realised, since she could see all three clearly for the first time since they were facing her and not sideways on, that she was probably looking at Legolas. Very odd. As she watched, Mireth turned as if looking for her, caught her eye, and with a grin beckoned her over.

'Oh bugger. Don't really want to meet Legolas. Actually maybe I do. Well, sort of, anyway.'

She nodded, stood and crossed the room.

As she reached them, the conversation was in full flow, since there was a pause between songs at the moment. Mireth, handing her a cup, was gesturing to Penny and talking to the rest who were looking at Penny intently now so that she suddenly felt very self-conscious. Mireth said her name and then went round the circle introducing everyone to her. The last of the three Mirkwood elves was named as Legolas. Penny barely had time to register it before Mireth was moving on and naming the others.

As the conversation started up again, Mireth having explained that Penny spoke no Sindarin or Westron, Penny snuck a look at him. Nothing special... but that is 'nothing special' compared to elves. He WAS stunning but then all elves are stunning. He was not any more stunning than the rest of them.

He had barely given her a second glance when he had been introduced, merely nodded, smiled and then turned to speak to the elf next to him. She had to restrain a giggle as she thought of all the Mary-Sues swooning and passing out right about now; either that or leaping on him to snog him to death. No, she had to sit down or she really would laugh out loud. As it was she couldn't look up from her drink in case she caught his eye because it would just set her off into hysterics. She had this vision in her head of a blond elf staggering backwards as some girl attached herself to him, limpet- like, her legs wrapped round his waist, and eating his face off.

She screwed her eyes shut and tried to bite her lips without drawing too much attention to herself. She coughed, desperately trying to smother the laughter rising in her throat. As a song started up Penny touched Mireth on the arm and indicated a bench to one side. Mireth nodded and turned back to the chatter.

As she sat she felt someone sit beside her. Gandalf. "Well, you have met Legolas now. I hope you were not too unnerved by it."

She didn't think it would be politic to explain what HAD gone through her brain just now so she just shook her head.

"Not at all. Well, perhaps a little. I will just have to get used to it. There is little or nothing anyone can do about it all."

Gandalf nodded and they fell silent for a moment.

Then Penny said, "Mithrandir? I know which is Boromir, and I now know which is Legolas. But, would you mind pointing Gimli out to me? Is he the one that Gloin speaks to quite often?"

Gandalf smiled. "No. That is Gloin's younger brother. Gimli is the one standing next to Gloin, to his right."

"Ah. I see him. Le hannon, Mithrandir."

So now she knew.

It felt very odd to know what they all looked like. To see them in the flesh. She wondered if she would get to know any of them any better. Somehow she suspected not.

She was unsure how she would cope with getting to know them as it was but added to which, though she little knew it, Elrond and Gandalf had decided to keep her away from those she had named as much as it was possible to do so. Or, at least, to keep supervision over any contact. Gandalf was convinced Penny would not let anything slip but even he had to concede that the stress and pressure of being in the situation of conversing with these people she knew so much about may prove too much.

Better that contact was kept to a minimum with most people but much more so with some than others. For the time being at least.


	15. DO Balrogs Have Wings?

**Chapter 15** _- "DO Balrogs have wings?"_

So followed days of learning for Penny. At breakfast the next morning, sat by the hobbits once more and Mireth with her, it was made known that she was now learning Sindarin. At which point Frodo took it upon himself to start pointing out everything at the breakfast table and saying the Sindarin name for it.

Over the next few meals this was to establish itself as a ritual so that no matter who she found herself seated beside they would start pointing at each dish, or its individual constituents, and naming them for her. It helped quite considerably and she also learnt seat or chair, table, cup, plate, spoon, knife and tapestry. She felt quite shy but very pleased that everyone seemed to be taking such an interest in helping her. She was quite touched, to be honest.

That same morning after Halbarad had left, as she munched on an apple at breakfast, she looked about her. The hobbits were all sat to her left. Mireth was next to her and Gandalf opposite. Next to the hobbits was Boromir deep in conversation with Merry and Sam but with Pippin interrupting and talking over them quite often. She smiled.

It suddenly struck her that she and Boromir were the only humans in the place. As she watched he glanced up, caught her eye, and nodded a greeting to her. She nodded back, flushed a little and looked away hurriedly. What the hell was she blushing for? God, she could irritate herself sometimes! Just because she had resolved not to get to know him there was no need to act like an utter idiot every time she saw him.

Erestor came over, clearly on his way out, and said something to her. She looked at him blankly. Gandalf translated.

"You are to have your lesson as soon as you have finished eating."

She smiled and nodded at Erestor who, thanking Gandalf, headed off. Mireth turned to her and, with hand-gestures, managed to convey that she would be in the garden waiting for her afterwards.

That morning's lesson wasn't so bad. She had remembered all of her words and letters and even managed to write them correctly. Erestor was clearly very pleased. She wondered how long this would last, though. Then, along with the next lot of letters and their words, she learnt how to say 'this is..' and 'what is this?': two phrases that she would find invaluable in the coming weeks. The half hour flew past and before long she was outside looking for Mireth.

The dress and undershift from yesterday had been shortened for her but while they were collecting them, Mireth sat Penny down, shoved a piece of material at her with a needle and thread and starting teaching her to sew.

The needles were made of bone and were very fine and delicate. Mireth, working on her own piece, showed Penny what to do and then Penny would try and copy the stitch. After a few times Mireth let her get on with it, indicating she should finish an entire row of stitches. Then she inspected the work. She clearly wasn't that impressed.

She showed Penny her own work and laid the two side by side so Penny could see the difference. Penny sighed. Hopeless.

Mireth said something and smiled. She indicated for her to pick up the piece and keep trying. They stayed there all morning.

By the end of it Penny thought her eyes were swimming from staring at the close stitching but Mireth seemed pleased with her progress and even she had to admit her stitches were more even and little straighter. Still rubbish, though, but an improvement nonetheless.

It became clear over that day, and the next few days, that everyone in Imladris had jobs to do or particular skills they used for the benefit of the entire community. Mireth, for example, seemed to spend a lot of time in the gardens, in particular the kitchen gardens. Now this _was_ something Penny could help with. She didn't know much but she'd always enjoyed helping her uncle out with his garden when she'd been a kid. It being late autumn there was lots of harvesting to be done and sowing of winter vegetables. Penny got stuck in. It was simple enough for Mireth to show her what needed doing and then she could be left to it.

There were several others who worked in the large enclosed kitchen garden on a regular basis along with Mireth: mostly females but there were one or two males also. Penny had noted when she had gone round Imladris with Halbarad that there was no natural division of labour according to sex. In every place of work you would find both male and female elves, though generally there seemed to be more of one sex than another in particular fields. So there were more female gardeners and seamstresses, and more male blacksmiths and tanners, for example.

There was one male in particular that Mireth spent a lot of time talking to or else working silently side by side with. He was slight in build, but tall, dark and, of course, beautiful. Celebdor he was called and he seemed to be the one in charge there, since it was mainly he who directed most of what was to be done. His voice was low and gentle when he spoke and Penny found that he, as much as Mireth, would tell her what to do, or rather show her how.

Mireth and Celebdor between them told Penny the names of everything including the tools. She couldn't remember them all but over the next few days things began to stick. She couldn't string a sentence together but already she had one or two words. However, while it increased her confidence and hope, she knew she had a long way to go yet.

Quickly Penny fell into a routine: morning lesson with Erestor, sewing lessons with Mireth and then helping her in the garden after lunch. Every meal she would see Gandalf and the hobbits but the dwarves and Mirkwood elves kept themselves to themselves while Boromir usually ate with Elrond and Erestor.

Frodo had taken it upon himself to test Penny at every such opportunity on the Sindarin she knew so far. She was particularly grateful for this over breakfasts since Frodo would grab her book off her as soon as she sat down and test her on her letters and words. It meant they were always fresh in her mind for her lesson.

The evenings she would spend walking in the gardens or seated in the Hall of Fire. She was getting more used to things now, more... well, 'at home' wasn't quite the phrase, but more settled. She had accepted, as much as she could, what had happened and where she was. It still freaked her out if she thought about it too much but it no longer terrified her to be seeing _real_ elves or _real _hobbits in the flesh.

Occasionally Penny would find one or two of the hobbits outside in the garden of an evening. They were always most courteous and insisted she come and sit with them. She suspected they had taken to her as a fellow foreigner and a stranger here. She noticed that Gandalf always seemed to appear fairly quickly on such occasions if he wasn't there already. Sneaky bugger was keeping an eye on her! Not that she blamed him.

On the second such occasion she found Pippin throwing her umpteen questions. Gandalf was translating. Where did she come from? How old was she? How come she didn't speak Westron, because everybody speaks Westron, don't they, I mean, everybody that is apart from elves because they mainly speak Sindarin, don't they Maura, but everybody else does, so how come you don't?

Penny couldn't help but laugh. Typical Pippin.

Gandalf was pleased by her answers. She simply said she came from far away and she had no idea why her language wasn't Westron.

"But you are right, Raz. It should be."

Pippin grinned as Gandalf translated this bit. "Have you heard of Sûza?" he was asking.

Penny glanced at Gandalf, unsure how much she could say or not. He nodded so she nodded to Pippin who squealed with delight.

"Really! Have you heard of Tûks? Because if anyone's heard of anyone from Sûza it would most likely be a Tûk, since we are the most adventurous kind of kuduk, you know."

She nodded again, "Yes I have heard of Tûks."

Pippin beamed.

Merry, coming to join them, said, "What is this? Heard of Tûks! What is the world coming to?"

Penny smiled as Gandalf indicated what was going on and then Pippin, making some retort, started a full-blown argument on the various merits of Tûks as opposed to Brandagambas.

"I have heard of Brandagambas too," said Penny, in a vain attempt to try and keep the peace.

Merry smirked at Pippin, "Of course she has. Sensible woman." Pippin, however, looked vaguely crestfallen at Penny's news.

She could see more questions were forthcoming, though, and that Gandalf was already looking edgy, so she tried to change the subject.

"I have not heard much, though. Why don't you tell me about Sûza and what it is like?"

The expression on Gandalf's face was akin to 'Good save!' because the hobbits then spent the rest of the evening talking both to her and at her. When they started on family trees, however, Penny looked desperately at Gandalf and he, laughing, told them that she was tired and genealogy would have to wait for another day. "Le hannon," she murmured to him in relief as she went past him and to her chambers.

Once or twice she met Boromir in the corridors or the garden. He seemed to be spending a lot of time with Gandalf or Elrond. He would always greet her politely and nod and she would do the same. Once she was standing in a corridor admiring a beautiful painting on the wall. Countless men on horses were striding out in formation, banners blowing in the wind and their armour glinting in the sunshine. The detail was exquisite. She wondered what it was depicting. Then she realised someone was standing beside her and she turned to see it was Boromir. He smiled and, pointing at the painting, said something about Elros and Numenor. She looked back at it. Now he said it she could see that the line of men and horses were heading towards the sea in the distance. Presumably this was the march of Elros as he led the Edain to Numenor. Wow. Her mind reeled a little.

Boromir was saying something to her but she had to shake her head, smiling apologetically, and he realised she didn't understand him. He tried a little Sindarin on her but got nowhere with that either. Looking a little confused he muttered an apology and walked off.

The next time she saw him was the following day in the Hall of Fire. She was sat on a bench, enjoying the singing, when she noticed Boromir and Elrond looking at her. They were clearly talking about her. She scowled. What the hell was that all about? Elrond was saying something to him now and Boromir was nodding as if suddenly everything was clear.

A little later Gandalf came over to her. "Boromir wishes to apologise for yesterday afternoon. He did not realise you did not speak the language. He felt he may have seemed a little startled by your incomprehension. Elrond has explained you are from a distant land but are learning Sindarin during your visit here."

She nodded. She wasn't sure she felt comfortable being spoken about behind her back, especially not with members of the Fellowship and especially not members of the Fellowship who she would be very happy if they took absolutely no interest in her at all. Not start asking her bloody life history from Elrond.

Gandalf was looking at her closely. "I will not ask but it is clear there is something that makes you uncomfortable about Boromir. I will do what I can to make sure he does not get to know you too well. Would that help you?"

She nodded, looking at him gratefully. "Yes, Mithrandir, it would. And thank you also for not asking."

He smiled, but he had guessed. Or guessed a little of what it might be. He sensed something about Boromir. He had not been happy with the Council's decision, and he had made that clear, but Gandalf knew he would stick by it. Gandalf knew Boromir of old. As did Aragorn, though Boromir was but a child then. He was a warrior and man of Gondor through and through. It would cut him deep if Gondor fell and Gandalf sensed the despair and hopelessness that was already in him. Not like Boromir at all. Things were bad in the South, Gandalf knew, but till this moment he had not realised quite how bad.

Gandalf and Elrond had noted Penny was looking calmer and behaving more normally in the few days after the questioning.

"I think being able to tell her story and have it both understood and accepted did wonders for her, frankly," Gandalf was saying one evening in Elrond's study.

Elrond sipped his wine. "I am pleased she has made no attempt to befriend the kuduk, Gimli, Legolas or Boromir."

Gandalf smiled knowingly. "Well, I did say to you that I didn't think we had anything to fear in that regard. She has got to know the kuduk a little but she makes every effort to keep it to a minimum." Elrond nodded and stayed silent for a while.

"She is doing well in her lessons," Erestor chipped in. "I notice Maura is helping her at breakfasts."

Elrond nodded. "Yes and Mireth also I believe. Surrounded by it she will pick it up quickly enough, I am sure. It is so much easier to learn a language when you hear it all the time."

"She will find it difficult to remember things long term, though, Erestor. I feel I should warn you of that." Erestor looked at Gandalf quizzically. "She is used to writing everything down. Where she comes from they do not learn by rote. Now it is easy enough because there is not so much to remember, but it will get harder for her the more she has to retain."

Erestor nodded. "Yes, well. She will soon be able to be taught to use quill or brush I think. Then, if she is neat enough, she can indeed write a vocabulary list. I would be most interested to learn what her language equivalents for the words I teach her are, so it would be helpful for us both." Gandalf nodded, smiling, as Erestor continued. "What did you decide in the end, concerning her?"

"Well there is little we can do at the moment," Elrond replied. "Even once the Ring has left I do not see where she could go. Mithrandir was suggesting Lothlorien. Galadriel would certainly be interested in meeting her, I am sure."

Erestor's eyes were wide. "But it is far too dangerous a journey in such times."

Gandalf nodded. "Of course, Erestor. It is unthinkable at the moment. After the war. After."

They fell silent then, their thoughts turning over the possibility of what may face them all 'after the war'. For it was by no means certain that they would win. Not at all. Not by a long bloody chalk.

There was a knock on the door. Elrond told whoever it was to come in. Penny's head appeared.

"You wanted to see me?"

Elrond motioned her to come in and sit beside the fire in a chair placed next to Gandalf.

"Wine?" he indicated a terracotta stoppered jug to one side and lifted his cup with his other hand.

Penny nodded. "Le hannon, hir nín."

Elrond exchanged a grin with Erestor. She was trying, at least, which was good.

She looked nervous so Elrond, as he handed her a cup, said, "We just wished to discuss a few things with you. You have had a few days here to settle in, to recover from the ordeal of the questioning.."

Penny's gaze dropped suddenly to her lap as Gandalf translated.

"Ah, yes," said Elrond, "I am sorry if I seemed harsh to you, my dear. But I hope you can understand our concern at the knowledge you showed."

Penny waited as Gandalf relayed the sense of his apology and then nodded. "It is quite alright, hir nín, I can understand completely. I hope you understand why I said what I did, why I risked your anger?" She looked up at him. "I had to make you understand."

Elrond nodded.

Gandalf now took over. "You know that we have decided you are to stay here for the time being and quite possibly till the War is over." Penny nodded. "Lord Elrond has been told that you are learning to sew and helping with the gardens. We were surprised you did not know such skills already. We wished to know if there were any skills you had so that you can spend your time here doing something you love."

Penny was speechless. Unbeknownst to them they had in fact landed her right in it by such a kind offer. How on earth was she going to explain that in the twenty-first century with its microwaves and consumerism, with its 'throw-away' culture and pre-prepared, off-the-hanger attitude, she had no skills whatsoever! Or none that would be of practical use here at any rate. She didn't think being able to hang a spoon of the end of your nose counted as a skill. Or at least Elrond would not think so.

Erestor, Elrond and Gandalf exchanged a glance. Elrond said quietly, "Pen- ii?"

Penny continued to stare at her feet, feeling her cheeks reddening.

Elrond murmured, "I don't believe it."

"So you do not sew, nor do you know how to tend a garden?" Gandalf asked

"No. I am enjoying working in the garden though."

Gandalf nodded. "Good. That is something. Can you cook?"

"I can boil an egg," she said hopefully. "Umm.. pasta? Make a sandwich?" Gandalf just looked baffled. "No," she sighed.

"Can you weave, or dye cloth or wool?"

She shook her head.

"Do you have any skills in healing? With herbs and their uses?"

"No."

"Know anything of animals or how to raise and care for them?"

"Well, I had a cat once..." She trailed off as Gandalf shook his head. He was clearly talking about horses, chickens or sheep and suchlike. She was feeling hugely embarrassed by all this now.

"Make paper? Make baskets? Work with leather? Metal? Wood?" Gandalf thought it unlikely but you never knew. Many elleths were very skilled in such things. She simply shook her head to every one, getting pinker and pinker.

"Can you paint or draw?"

"Well, I was always good at it at school, but I've not done it for ages. I couldn't do anything like the beautiful things that are painted on the walls here in Imladris. Not in a million years."

Gandalf breathed a sigh of relief and translated for the elves who were fairly stunned by what they were learning. "It is a start, Pen-ii. It shows you have some artistic skill so perhaps that can be awoken once more and put to use." He paused for a moment and then voiced the thoughts of both Elrond and Erestor when he asked, "How is it you do not have such skills where you come from, Pen-ii? Surely these are basic things for everyday life? Halbarad told us you were clearly unused to horses and had never even washed clothes before."

"That's not true. I have washed clothes. Of course I have. Just... not by hand, that's all." Gandalf looked confused and Penny sighed, unsure she should explain too much. "Things are very different where I come from. It is a least six thousand years from now and possibly a lot more than that."

Gandalf translated this for Elrond and Erestor whose eyes widened at the thought that she was from a time near two Ages from their own.

"People do things for us. Machines do things for us. I can buy a meal ready made. I have no need to cook. I work to get money and buy everything I need."

Gandalf nodded, "Ah, well what did you do for work?"

Penny blinked at him. There was no way on earth he was going to understand the concept of marketing. "Umm... ah, well. Err... I would... I would help people sell things."

"So you would help in a market? On a stall?"

"Not exactly, no. Umm. Say you had something really nice to sell and you wanted people to know about it and buy it. I would find out from people what they would like and how they would like it presented to them so you could then tell the right people in the right way about your product so the most number of people would then buy whatever it was you were selling."

Gandalf was lost. Completely. Given that he couldn't understand her word for word, the general sense of what she had just said seemed so bizarre and convoluted that all he could do was turn to the other two, who were waiting for the translation, and shrug.

Penny laughed. "Oh it doesn't matter. It was very boring and I hated it. Basically I dealt with pieces of paper. Writing." She made a writing motion.

THAT they understood. She smiled.

"Thing is I don't know how to use a quill and it was in a different language so that one skill is useless here."

Gandalf nodded and there was soft laughter from Elrond and Erestor when he translated.

Elrond was speaking and Gandalf translated for him. They would see to it that she learnt a little of everything. That way she could discover that which she was best suited to.

"You know there is no division of labour between male and female amongst elves?" Gandalf asked. She nodded. "Then you will watch and learn everything. From how to deal with horses, to metal work, to tanning, to embroidery. Some you may not wish to learn in which case you simply say so. Others you may find you like and enjoy and have an aptitude for. The only way we will find out is by you trying."

She nodded. She was quite looking forward to this and the other three could see she was pleased by this idea.

"Mithrandir, there is one thing I would ask."

"What is it?"

"I realise I will need to learn more Sindarin first, probably, but..." She looked at them all, seated and watching her with kind eyes. "I would like to learn more of your history. I know some, but there are gaps in what we have where I come from. I have many questions."

Gandalf smiled and as he translated for the other two they positively beamed. "An excellent idea, Pen-ii," Elrond was saying. "I for one would enjoy learning what you already know and helping to provide answers to your questions."

"What questions do you have?" Erestor was intrigued.

Penny laughed a little shyly then. "Too many. Do Balrogs have wings? What happened to Maglor? Are dragons Maia? Were orcs created from elves or men? Is Celeborn Sindarin or Teleri? How old is Legolas and who was his mother?"

As Gandalf translated this the three looked astonished and, at the last one, started laughing loudly. Penny looked at them, a little miffed.

"What's so funny? People nearly come to blows over this kind of stuff, you know! I'm serious!"

She was on a roll now and kept going, Gandalf struggling to keep up with her and translate as she spoke with obvious enthusiasm.

"Look, you see the thing is we have quite a bit on the First Age, and a lot of detail about now, from Bilba finding the Ring and onwards. What we don't have is much detail between the two." She looked at Elrond now, "We know little about you and your brother, or about Gil-galad. We know only the barest details of Celebrimbor and the creation of the Rings, the attack on Eriador, the Witch-King's assault on Arnor, the rise of Sauron in Dol Guldur. I would love to know more about all those things."

The three were nodding now, more serious.

"Of course, Pen-ii. And if you only know The Silmarillion then you will have only the barest outline of the great tales of the First Age. That too we can go over in detail," said Erestor.

Penny beamed. This was fantastic! For the first time she was pleased to be here. Really, REALLY pleased to be here.

"I have loads more you know! What happened to the Blue Istari? Who exactly WERE the Nazgul before they became Nazgul? Oh! Oh!" She practically bounced on her seat in excitement. "Queen Beruthial! We don't know much about her except she had cats!"

Gandalf was laughing, "Stop! Stop, Pen-ii! One question at a time. Let us deal with the first one first. Balrogs. You want to know if they have wings, yes?"

Penny nodded. "And if they do, why don't they fly?"

As Gandalf spoke her eyes widened and a smug grin spread across her face. She had always _thought_ that was the case. Ah, it was SO gratifying to know she'd been right all along.

* * *

Author's Note: If you think I am going to declare one way or the other if Balrogs actually have wings or not and get myself embroiled THAT whole can of worms, then you have another think coming. ;)

_Le hannon_ - I thank thee.

_Hir nín_ - my lord


	16. The Mirror Cracked From Side to Side

**Warning for all male readers:** 'feminine hygiene' issues (i.e. concerning a woman's monthly cycle) are dealt with in this chapter. Nothing graphic, I promise, but thought it only fair to warn you in advance.

* * *

**Chapter 16** _- "The Mirror Cracked From Side to Side"_

Penny was getting anxious. It was the morning of the sixth day since Halbarad had left and she knew she had a situation on her hands.

She was feeling horrible. For the first time since her 'arrival' she was craving chocolate and she felt bloated, fat, and unreasonably bolshy. So much so that she had decided to keep her head down for the day because she knew that all it would take was one elf looking down their nose at her and she was likely to go off on one. Big time.

She knew what was coming. Tomorrow or the next day for definite.

She sighed. How on _earth_ was she going to explain this and get some help? She was just thankful that she was more or less regular. She did not like to think about what might have happened otherwise. Suddenly 'coming on' in the woods with Halbarad, for example... NOT pleasant. It did not even bear thinking about!

She had worked out that she would need cloth. She vaguely remembered an expression she had always hated but at least now understood: 'on the rag'. She was not sure what next, though. She had no underpants, nothing to keep cloth in place. She had considered using her PJs. She could sew up the rip and cut the legs off to make shorts. The thing was: they were baggy. No way they would keep anything stable for very long, if at all.

There was nothing else for it. She was just going to have to speak to Mireth about it. How, she had no idea, but she had no choice.

She struggled in her Sindarin lesson that morning because she was not really concentrating. Erestor clearly gave her a gentle ticking off at one point and she had to fight every instinct to not bite his head off in response. Bloody hormones!

She waited till after the sewing lesson with Mireth before trying to broach the subject. Eleniel was coming with them to eat but they had a little time before lunch so the three had gone to an inner courtyard where there was a fountain and benches. Penny was quiet and Mireth could see something was on her mind. She looked at her questioningly and said her name.

Penny looked at her. "Ah. Yes. Okay. Hoo boy, this is going to be interesting. Where to begin?"

She had learnt a phrase that she suspected was something akin to 'help me' or 'assist me' because Mireth or Celebdor would use it whenever they needed her to come and help them with something in the garden. So she said it.

Mireth and Eleniel nodded, smiled and then clearly asked her what she needed help with.

Penny sighed and went a little pink. She tried to indicate all three of them. "Us. Females. Err... what is the Sindarin for 'woman'?" She looked at them and said, "Not edain. Us." She indicated the three of them once more.

Mireth and Eleniel muttered something to each other. They suspected they understood but weren't sure.

"Elleth?" Mireth asked.

"Well, not exactly. You 'elleth'. Me?" She pointed to them and to herself as she spoke.

Now they seemed to be getting it. "Ahh," said Eleniel. "Adaneth." Then she indicated one hand as she said "adan" and then the other as she said "adaneth."

Penny nodded and repeated "Adaneth. Good. Now we're getting somewhere. Umm... ahh.."

She pointed at her stomach and then made downward sweeping motions with her hands towards her legs and the floor. She could see the two elves were utterly mystified. She sighed.

There were some flowerbeds in the corners of the courtyard. Penny now crouched down beside one and started poking her finger in the soil. She counted up to thirty as she made holes. She looked up to see if they were following. They were but clearly confused still. She then drew a line across the first seven holes she had made and then made the same downward motion with her hands from her stomach.

She could see the light dawn in Mireth's face as she gasped, then turned and said something to Eleniel who clearly said the elvish equivalent of 'Oh, I SEE!'.

"Of course, Pen-ii! Of course. We should have realised. We," she indicated Eleniel and herself, "Don't get them very often. Or rather, we can control it. I forgot that, of course, you humans have no control over such things and get them once a month. Well, we must provide you with some cloths to use."

She held out her hand to Penny who was dusting the earth from her hands as she stood, very relieved to have made herself understood comparatively easily.

"Don't worry, Pen-ii," Eleniel was saying kindly. "You mustn't be at all embarrassed. Perfectly natural. Is it now?"

She pointed to the floor as she said 'now' and Penny looked at her uncomprehendingly. She repeated the question and the motion.

Penny then guessed what she was asking her and shook her head. "No. But soon. Tomorrow maybe," and she did an arcing motion with her hand to try and indicate 'not now but after'. They guessed her meaning and nodded.

After lunch they took her to the communal sewing room once more. It was quiet for once so they were the only ones in there. Eleniel went into the store room and came out with a huge bolt of a linen type of material, undyed. She quickly cut a large piece from it and tore it into smaller sections. Then, as Mireth took the bolt of material back into the storeroom, Eleniel went to the huge chest of drawers and opened one of the umpteen little drawers in it. She pulled out a length of knotted material, like a belt.

Penny had been looking at the cloths. They seemed terribly big. Mireth was back and piling the cloths together neatly and, taking the belt Eleniel had handed to her, she placed that on top and handed the whole lot to Penny.

Penny took it but the bewilderment was clear on her face. Mireth and Eleniel exchanged a glance. Penny was holding out the belt.

"What is this for?"

She put down the pile on the central table and picked up one of the cloths. She said, "This seems very big." She repeated 'big' and spread her arms wide and looked questioningly at them.

"How do I use this?" she was asking and then started folding the material in half then half again and again in an attempt to get it somewhere near the size of a sanitary towel. She succeeded only in making something that was about the size and thickness of a housebrick.

The elves laughed softly and stopped her. Penny watched in fascination as Mireth unfolded the cloth and refolded so it made a long, thick strip. Then she picked up the belt, wrapped it round her waist and tied it securely. Then she picked up the long strip and tucked one end over the belt from underneath so the folded material hung down in front of her with the end hanging over the belt. She then picked up the other end of the cloth and motioned that it went between the legs to be tucked under the belt at the back.

Penny understood but she was still fairly horrified. It was HUGE. Nor was she convinced that the belt would hold everything in place, though given how much of the folded material strip hung back over it... Perhaps she could make loops to thread the belt through? She sighed.

Well, she had her answer. She still would have the 'interesting' problem of what to do with them. She noticed that they had given her three pieces of cloth only. Three. Like her granny had always said about bed linen: 'one on, one off and one in the wash'. She was, presumably, to wash and re-use them. Utterly vile. Yet she supposed this is what women had done for thousands of years, perhaps still did in large parts of the world in the twenty-first century. Like washable nappies. She was _not_ looking forward to this, though.

She gathered it all up, said thank you to them both, muttered 'garden' at Mireth who nodded, smiling, and then she went to put it all in her room.

The two elves watched her go with slight bemusement on their faces. She clearly hadn't known what to do with what they had given her, so then... what on earth did she use normally? They were utterly baffled and very intrigued.

That afternoon in the garden Penny was given a job of pruning back a large flowering shrub. Celebdor showed her what needed doing: take out the dead wood first, then cut back the live wood to within six inches or so from the ground. It was going to be hard work but Penny was grateful to have something to burn her energy off on.

At supper she ignored Boromir's smiles in her direction when she happened to catch his eye. She knew he was just being polite but she did not need it and, given the filthy mood she was in, she definitely did not need it tonight. She also ignored Gandalf's questioning glances at her scowls. She responded dutifully to Frodo and Mireth's Sindarin vocabulary tips during the meal but all she really wanted to do was go to bed. She was feeling so achy and horrible that she thought she might go to sleep wearing that belt thing.

It was a good job she did and it worked quite well she had to admit. The cloth was cotton-like and both absorbent and comfortable. She felt a little self-conscious with such a clunking great thing on underneath her skirts but with the undershift as well as well as her dress it wasn't visible to others for which she was SO relieved.

Mireth had given her as a present a little sewing pouch with threads, a needle, a thimble and a small knife in it. Penny had been very touched and said 'le hannon' so often Mireth had gone pink and flapped her hands at Penny as if to say 'really, it's nothing'.

Penny now used the little knife to cut material from her destroyed PJ trousers. She made 'liners' in effect: pieces of material folded a few times that she could 'line' the larger strip she was wearing on the belt with. That way, at least for the first few days, the large cloth strips would last, she hoped, a whole day with her only needing to change the liners. Otherwise she would be facing the prospect of using still wet washed cloths since they would take at least a day to dry. That was not a prospect she relished.

She felt dreadful though. Ibuprofen or paracetamol were not available here, of course, but she had bad cramps and felt thoroughly irritated that she didn't have anything like them available to her. Bugger! She didn't feel up to breakfast. Nor was she going to her Sindarin lesson. No bloody way! Stuff it. One day wouldn't make a difference. She wasn't at school for goodness sake! She dozed instead.

A knock on her door woke her. Her name being called.

Erestor.

Damn and blast! She got up and opened the door.

"What!"

He seemed a little startled at her abruptness and said something that included the word 'Sindarin' and was clearly a question. No doubt asking where the bloody hell she'd got to.

She growled, "I'm not well. Okay? Not today." She rubbed her stomach and went "Ow" just for good measure.

Suddenly Erestor looked concerned. Penny groaned as she heard him speaking more gently and mentioning something about Elrond and Mithrandir. Why couldn't he just LEAVE it? She knew where this was heading and she really didn't want him knowing the reason for all this, let alone him involving anyone else. God! MEN! Bloody typical!

"No, Erestor! Hir nin... umm... not Elrond or Mithrandir." She shook her head, then indicated her tongue and shook her head again. "Don't say anything, Erestor." She wagged her finger at him.

He understood what she was saying but had no idea why. "Pen-ii if you are ill, then let us tend to you. Lord Elrond would be most distressed to know you are unwell and refusing help. He would rightly be angry with me if I did not tell him you were unwell. I have to tell him, Pen-ii." He could see she was getting angry. What on earth was the matter?

"Oh for pity's sake, Erestor, just drop it, will you!" She was flushing with embarrassment now. "Just.. just... fetch Mireth. Mireth or Eleniel."

Erestor was looking at her in confusion.

She sighed in frustration, "How complicated is it, Erestor? Go and get Mireth or Eleniel! Do NOT say anything to Mithrandir or Elrond or I will wring your bloody neck!"

She shook her head firmly, scowling at him, as she said 'Mithrandir and Elrond'. She then nodded as she said 'Mireth or Eleniel'.

Erestor finally got it. Or in part, at least. He nodded, murmuring 'Mireth' and 'Eleniel', and went off to find one of the two elleths while Penny slammed the door on him, fuming in annoyance and acute embarrassment.

Mireth or Eleniel would immediately understand what all this was about. She cursed herself for not going downstairs for breakfast now and trying to find one of them to tell them. They could have made some excuse for her with Erestor. Stupid of her. Really stupid.

She should not have got so narked with him just now either. It was not his fault. Now he would no doubt be told the REAL reason for her not feeling up to his lesson and she would never be able to look him in the face again. Girls knowing about it was one thing. Males and, in particular, beautiful, austere male_ elves_ who hardly knew her from a bar of soap, was something else entirely.

Penny groaned. What a _nightmare_ this was turning out to be.

There was soon another knock on her door. It was Mireth and, much to Penny's astonishment, she was giggling her head off.

"What's so funny?"

There followed a long explanation, little of which Penny understood, but the name Erestor was mentioned several times and, given the hand gestures Mireth was making of placing her hands on her cheeks or fanning herself, Penny guessed that Erestor had indeed been told what was going on and had been hugely embarrassed by it all. Mireth seemed to find the idea of Erestor going pink to the ears hilarious. Penny had to agree it was an amusing thought but she felt nearly as embarrassed as she suspected Erestor now did.

She felt very unwell though. Mireth saw it in her eyes as soon as she had recovered from her laughter at Erestor's expense. It was obvious Penny was in some discomfort. She led her down to the kitchens, the first time Penny had been inside them though she knew where they were.

Penny gasped in astonishment at the huge ovens she saw there, the three large fireplaces with poles long enough to roast a whole deer on them as well as the hooks and contraptions to hang every assortment of pot you could imagine above the flames. The walls were lined with shelves filled with saucepans, pots, bowls and jars. Row upon row of jars, indeed: large and small, terracotta, earthenware and glass. Every one had something written on it in Tengwar.

She noted that the chefs, busy chopping and preparing pots of things to go on the fires since it was only an hour or two before lunch, were all males. They nodded and greeted them pleasantly enough as they entered but did not question Mireth at all. Clearly this was perfectly normal for someone to wander in and help themselves to whatever they needed.

Penny, who knew almost the entire alphabet now, amused herself as Mireth busied herself putting a pot of water over one of the fires by trying to spell out the words written on the pots. Mireth looked up, smiled and came over to her. Penny held out a pot to her and slowly, with difficulty, spelt out the word. Mireth beamed and nodded. Penny felt very pleased with herself. She had no idea what the word meant but she could read. Some of them she could not manage since there were letters she could not remember the sounds for, or had yet to learn, or else she could not make out the writing. But it was a start.

Mireth was calling her over. She pointed to a pot, small and with a blue glaze up to half way round it. There were flowers painted in white round its rim. Mireth read out the label to Penny, tracing the letters with her finger as she did so. Penny nodded.

Penny then watched as Mireth fetched a mug from the many in a cupboard nearby, and then, the water being hot, she picked up a cloth that hung on a hook beside the fireplace she had used, folded it twice and then placed it round the handle of the pot to take it from the fire.

She placed the pot on the large central table next to the mug. Then she went to a drawer and took out a small wooden spoon. She then, making sure Penny was watching her, took half a spoonful of some pale brown powder from the blue pot and put it into the mug. She then stuck the spoon into the water and added just enough water so she could mix a paste with the powder. Then she indicated for Penny to pour more water into the mug while she stirred all the while, mixing the powder thoroughly. She placed the pot back on a shelf and then moved to another pot and again indicated it to Penny and read out the label. She took out the stopper and, using a clean spoon, added two spoons of what was clearly honey to the hot liquid in the mug. Then she offered the mug to Penny, pointing to Penny's stomach as she did so and indicating a stool for Penny to sit on.

Penny thanked her and sniffed at the mug. All she could smell was the honey. She wondered what this was for. Was it for periods in particular or a general pain killer?

She took a sip. Mireth had put two spoons of honey in but it didn't completely mask the taste of whatever that powder was. It was very bitter. Penny coughed and spluttered. Mireth grinned but made gestures clearly insisting she drink it down. Penny tried again and nearly gagged. God, it was foul. But then she was really feeling pretty unpleasant, so if this worked...

She pinched her nose and swallowed it as fast as she could, fighting the retching in her throat.

Mireth nodded her approval. She held out her hand for the mug. Then she beckoned Penny over to the far side of the room where, beside a door that clearly led out to the gardens of Imladris and, Penny suspected, was near the kitchen gardens, there was something that was obviously a sink. Of sorts.

It was a huge basin attached to the wall with a pipe leading from a hole in the bottom that ran out through the wall and outside. There were, of course, no taps. Mireth indicated a large bucket underneath it with a ladle in it.

Penny picked it up as Mireth directed her to. It was very heavy and she struggled a little but eventually managed to get it onto the top of the cupboard right next to the sink. At Mireth's insistence she ladled cold water into the pot of water they had heated just now and then Penny poured that into the sink as Mireth rinsed the two spoons and the mug under the water's flow. Then they dried them and put them back in their places.

By the time they left the kitchens Penny could feel it working whatever it was. The pain was easing and she felt far more herself again.

Mireth asked her a question which she didn't understand but Mireth repeated it and gently placed her hand on Penny's stomach as she did so looking at her inquiringly.

Penny nodded and smiled. She made a horizontal motion with her hand as she said, "All gone. Le hannon." Mireth beamed.

As Mireth headed off to the sewing room and Penny returned to her chambers, she was suddenly very grateful that Mireth had shown her how to organise a bath.

It had been the morning after the questioning and, thankfully, Mireth had quickly understood Penny's hand gestures. Mireth had pointed at herself and had also made washing motions so it was clear she would have a bath as well. So, after their afternoon gardening and with a couple of hours till the evening meal, Mireth had taken Penny into one of the rooms near the kitchens.

It was clearly a water room of some description: that was all Penny could think to call it. There was a pump against one wall with a grate below it to catch any water spilt. All along one wall were buckets and tubs of various sizes. To one side was a large fireplace that spanned the entire wall and was deep enough and wide enough to fit two huge cauldrons over the fire.

Mireth had set the fire while indicating Penny should start filling the cauldrons with buckets of water. It was hard work. Penny was huffing and sweating very quickly.

Mireth had told Eleniel they would be bathing and she had come to help given that there would be enough hot water in both cauldrons for three baths so she could have one also. As they left the water to heat up they had started getting things ready. Two would carry a tub and the other two buckets of cold water behind them and they did this three times to each of their rooms.

Once the water was steaming hot in the cauldrons (which took quite a while to heat up) they had filled two buckets each at a time and carried them through the corridors and up the stairs to their rooms. They passed 'en route' several elves who, after hurried questioning of the two elleths, came to help them. It was a huge rigmarole, basically. At long last they had added five buckets of steaming hot water to each of the tubs and that seemed to be sufficient.

What this all meant was that, two days later, Penny knew where to get water and buckets from and she was grateful since she would be doing necessary washing in her chambers every day, if not more than once a day, for the following week. Mireth had also fetched a clothes airer for her to use in her chambers for which Penny was truly thankful.

She quickly managed to get the hang of it all over the next day or two and it was not as bad as she had feared. The belt worked quite well and kept everything secure while the liners she had made did their job brilliantly. She washed them out in a bucket of water she would carry to her room and then, once done and the material hanging on the airer, she would carry the bucket back down again and tip the water away where Mireth had shown her to.

At lunch later that day Mireth said something to Gandalf who was seated with them both. He turned to Penny.

"Mireth wanted you to know that the powder she showed you this morning is for all pain. Any pain you may have. But you should take it only twice a day maximum, say in the morning and again in the evening, if you need to. Now you know how to prepare it you can do it yourself any time you need to."

Penny nodded and thanked both Gandalf for translating and Mireth for showing her something very useful indeed.

"What is the powder, Mithrandir? What plant is it?"

Mithrandir told her its name – the same as that written on the pot – and explained it came from a tree: its bark, ground up. He made grinding motions in his hand. She nodded.

It was only later that it occurred to her that it could possibly be aspirin. Or something very similar, at least.

'Every day I am learning something new it would seem', she said to herself. She was slowly finding her feet.

* * *

Author's Note: I have no idea if elves have periods so please don't try and embroil me in that debate. :) According to The Great Man Himself they can control when they have children but whether this is something both the male and the female can control I do not know but I presume so and that is the case (more poetic licence) in this fic. It is not unreasonable to assume they would not always conceive first time they 'chose' and so would, occasionally, have a period. That is my thinking behind what Mireth says, anyway. Just to explain. 

My apologies for the subject matter (and the lack of Fellowship sightings) in this chapter, and I do hope no-one was too put off by it, but I would remind everyone (not that you need reminding, I am sure grin) that the challenge this story was written as a response to demanded to know what REALISTIC problems the 'girl falls into ME' would face. And this, ladies, is one that we would all have to face sooner or later. Inescapable. Just like the latrine issue. Just as inevitable and just as potentially problematic.

Though why I am apologising for this after inflicting the awfulness of the Latrine of Dooooom on you, I have no idea/evil manic laughter/

_adan_ - man (mortal human male); _edain_ is the plural form

_adaneth_ - woman (mortal human female)

_Hir nin_ - my lord


	17. Beauties and Nincompoops

**PLEASE NOTE:** _**Revised chapter**_ since I was reminded that Boromir lost his horse on his journey north so there would not be a saddle or saddle blanket for Penny to look at. It's mentioned by Boromir in "Farewell to Lorien" (FOTR) as well as in Appendix D of 'Galadriel & Celeborn' in The Unfinished Tales. 

Thanks to NancyBrooke for pointing it out and to Argael and NL for getting the references for me of where it's mentioned.

* * *

**Chapter 17** _- "Beauties and Nincompoops"_

The following day Penny was unsure if she should say anything to Erestor or not in her lesson. She felt very bad that she had been quite so arsey with him, and very embarrassed that she had not handled things better and saved him finding out what was going on.

The lesson was a little longer that day since Erestor was finally allowing her to learn to use a quill. It was hard going and she got cramp in her hand fairly quickly because of the angle she had to hold the nib against the page to get any kind of decent, controllable mark with the ink. Even so, given that she already knew how to write, it was not as difficult as it might have been. Her efforts were wobbly but nearly legible.

Erestor seemed pleased enough with her efforts. However, Penny got the impression that he was thinking she'd done passably well 'for a mortal' and that he would have expected far better from an elf.

She now had the alphabet and was moving on to the first lesson in her book: a continuation of what Erestor had already taught her in that it introduced new vocabulary via 'this is' and 'what is this?'.

Penny discovered that Erestor was an excellent artist. He quickly produced little line drawings on the blackboard to represent each word in the chapter. Penny grinned. It made Erestor seem softer somehow. Not that he was that stiff and cold with her but a little austere perhaps. He clearly enjoyed it though and looked quite smug when Penny showed she had immediately understood what he had drawn.

When the lesson had finished he presented her with a quill, a pot of ink, and some pieces of paper: thick, rough and a pale brown colour. Looking through the three sheets she saw that he had written each letter of the alphabet down the left hand sides with an inch and a half gap or more between each one. He indicated he wanted them filled out with her practising each letter in the gaps he had left.

She gasped. "All this by tomorrow?"

Erestor's brow furrowed.

She took the chalk, drew a sun on the board and pointed to the floor.

"Today."

At first he did not understand what she had drawn. When she added a tree, a cloud and then pointed upwards making a huge circle with her hand Erestor finally nodded, but cautiously. She then drew a moon, another sun and then a line between the two. She circled the first sun and the moon.

"Today," she said pointing at the floor again.

Then she indicated the second sun. "Tomorrow," and she made a forward arcing motion with her hand as if to indicate 'after'.

Erestor understood. He said the Sindarin for 'today' and 'tomorrow' pointing to her very basic drawings as he did so. For good measure he gestured his thumb backwards over his shoulder and said 'yesterday'.

Penny nodded and repeated the words. She realised she would not remember everything everyone told her but even if she only remembered some of it that would be better than nothing. She then said the Sindarin for 'tomorrow' in a questioning tone and indicated the pieces of paper.

He took one page from her and held it up, tracing his finger down the entire page as he said, "Tomorrow. All this for tomorrow's lesson, Pen- ii."

She nodded. Not so bad. Good. She smiled. And Erestor returned her smile, seeing she had understood him.

As she turned the door handle and opened the door, clutching her book, paper, quill and stoppered pot of ink she turned.

"Erestor?"

He looked up, an eyebrow raised, as he went through a pile of paperwork on one side of the room.

"About yesterday, Erestor. Goheno nin." She tried to remember the word he had just told her for 'yesterday' and then said it.

He suddenly looked a little pink and unable to look her in the eye. He muttered something at her and nodded. Penny was fairly sure she'd heard him say 'goheno nin' back to her. Poor bugger. She nodded, smiled and left the room.

"Ah! Pen-ii!"

She turned to see Gandalf bearing down on her, beaming at her. "Aiya, Mithrandir."

His beam widened. He turned to introduce her to a male elf walking beside him. The elf bowed. Penny recognised him. She had seen him at the stables when Halbarad had shown her around.

"You are to start learning to ride, Pen-ii."

Horror gripped her. Apart from the fact that she didn't WANT to learn to ride, she was fairly certain that the belt contraption would NOT stand up to the jiggling and bouncing involved in such an activity.

"Err... Mithrandir... Not sure this is such a good idea. Do I have to? Really, I could... I could learn about horses without getting on one, couldn't I? It was bad enough with Halbarad but I didn't really have a choice. Being on one all by myself and in charge of it... I couldn't. I'll fall off. I'll break my neck. It'll bite me. Or something."

Gandalf laughed. "The elves know horses well and would not let anything happen to you. But if you are unsure I will ask that you work at the stables for a little while to get used to the animals before you learn to ride. How would that be?"

She nodded, grateful to have an excuse to wait for a week before beginning.

"Very well. Every day, once you have finished with Erestor, you are to make your way to the stables. They will teach you. Then after lunch today you are to learn your first skill: weaving. Mireth will show you where."

Penny nodded, feeling a little overwhelmed by all this. It WAS like being back at school. The elf was looking at her, clearly waiting for her to follow him. She waved her book and paper at them.

"I need to take these to my room first."

"Very good. Then Lindir will meet you at the stables then."

Penny nodded but did not move. Lindir had turned to leave, nodding his head slightly to Penny before he did so. Gandalf looked at Penny curiously.

"You have heard of him?"

"I think so. But I can't remember where." Gandalf nodded, his eyes sparkling as he smiled. "I think he was just an elf of Imladris that the kuduk met."

"Ah. So a minor figure in your stories."

"Well, yes. But a name I know nonetheless."

She shook her head. Still felt odd all of this. She turned to go.

"Oh, Pen-ii?"

She turned back.

"Lord Elrond wanted me to tell you if there was anything in particular you wanted to learn, just to ask. You are free to wander where you wish, to look at what you wish and study those at work round Imladris. Everyone here knows of you and that you may well be studying various skills here so you will made welcome wherever you find yourself."

She smiled. "Tell him 'le hannon'. I am very grateful."

Once she was at the stables she found there was little for her to do at first. Lindir simply did what he needed to anyway while she watched. It mainly involved brushing down the horses, mucking out, giving fresh water, and leading various horses out to the paddocks just outside the walls or bringing others in.

Lindir was very kind with her, smiling often, and pointing out the names of things and getting her to repeat them. Her ignorance of Sindarin clearly went ahead of her.

He showed her how to brush down a horse and got her to try on a chestnut mare.

She was not convinced she was doing it correctly at first and was quite nervous about even touching a horse.

Lindir kept her working on the horse's flank and all the while he was murmuring in the horse's ear, reassuring her.

'That's right, Pen. Freak out the horse, why don't you?' she thought

He watched her and nodded, smiling so she was obviously doing it right. She ended up brushing the entire animal. She was sweating slightly, too, at the end of it. God, she was unfit but this kind of stuff did not feel like exercise and was definitely more interesting than aerobics or jogging, that was for bloody sure.

He showed her the tack room. Even though the elves did not use saddles or bridles they kept a few for guests to use. Added to which there were those of the guests' own horses to be housed. Penny marvelled at them since many were covered with decorations and designs, showing some stunning craftsmanship.

She scanned them all vaguely wondering which one was Boromir's for no particular reason. She was surprised not to see any indication of Gondor that she could tell on any of the saddles. All seemed to be styled similarly and though she could not know if the Gondorian style of decoration was different from that of the elves she imagined it would be.

That was a point. Boromir was mainly dressed in new tunics whenever she saw him. Or what looked like new tunics, and of the same style as Elrond, Erestor or Glorfindel might wear. Perhaps there was no difference, after all, between Gondorian and elvish styles.

Lindir was watching her staring at the saddles, lost in her own thoughts and he called her name gently.

She turned with a start and smiled.

"Which of these is Boromir's?"

She asked it as inconsequentially as she could. An innocent enough question, surely. Lindir looked utterly baffled by it though.

She pointed at the saddles. "These? Boromir?"

Lindir just shook his head. His negative response was clear enough. Boromir's saddle wasn't there. Penny was confused.

A bell rang. Lunch. Lindir said something and beckoned to her. He was going to walk her to the halls it would seem.

Penny couldn't help but smile to herself. A beautiful, dark-haired male walking her to lunch. She had to suppress what she suspected would have been an obvious 'shit-eating grin' at the thought. Then she remembered when Glorfindel had kissed her hand. 'Stick THAT in your pipe and smoke it, Mary-Sue!' She giggled.

Lindir's not so subtle glance in her direction as she tried to smother her laughter brought her back to earth, though. She was an ignorant, foreign mortal. More to the point she was a blooming bizarre, ignorant, foreign mortal to them. Just to rub salt into the wound she was fairly sure she was generally considered a none-too attractive, bizarre, ignorant, foreign mortal. Especially when compared to any elleth.

So much for all those 'here let me just leap into bed with you, Oh Gorgeous Elf-hunk of My Dreams' fics, then! If she did not think it would earn her another 'are you mad?' glance from Lindir she would have laughed hollowly. Very hollowly indeed.

Lunch was soup. Which was safe enough.

Lindir led her to join him and the elves he knew well so she was on the other side of the room from the hobbits and Gandalf for once but Pippin and Merry saw her and waved. She smiled as they said something to Frodo who then turned and grinned at her, raising his hand. Lindir was gently saying 'sit' and she did.

Thus far at mealtimes, or indeed at any other time when she had encountered more than one male elf at a time, she had always had the 'Balancing Out' effect: either men, hobbits or dwarves cancelling out the 'insansely beautiful' factor or else elleths, while just as stunning, at least cancelling out the 'gorgeous _male_' factor. So to find herself suddenly surrounded entirely by male elves as she sat and took stock of those around her was just a little difficult to cope with.

In fact it was utterly overwhelming and she found it hard to know where to look.

To one side, a few elves down from them, she recognised the elf she and Halbarad had met outside Imladris. He caught her eye and smiled. She nodded. Celebdor was opposite her, which at least was a familiar face. He grinned and served her some soup and cut her some bread. On the other side of her she could see the three Mirkwood elves. Legolas was on Celebdor's side of the table and he, and the others, murmured a greeting to her. She was fairly impressed they remembered her name, too, since she had only met them the once. She smiled and returned their 'aiya' as politely as she could.

Hoo boy.

She was not sure she would ever get used to how amazingly beautiful elves were. It was not like a 'drool dribbling out of the side of your mouth as your chin hits the floor' kind of beautiful. Well, okay, it was, but it was not JUST that nor was that the first thing that struck you. There was a LOT more to it than that.

It was the beauty of a bright summer's day and birdsong and a child's laugh all rolled into one. It was the best moment you had ever had. It was the light filtering through a leaf or the glimmer of a diamond in candlelight. It was the smell of a rose or the sea or fresh cut grass in springtime. It was... it was... well, it was like nothing on earth.

Penny concentrated very hard on her soup and left as soon as she could with a murmured 'le hannon' to Lindir for looking after her so well.

She hoped she wouldn't have to experience THAT too often, or at least that she would eventually get used to it. Though... she couldn't imagine you _ever_ would get used to it. She wondered if Aragorn had got used to it, given he had more or less grown up with it. She decided to ask him when he came back. If he would not find it a rude question. Given he was betrothed to an elf it might be...

_That_ was a point. How come she had not been introduced to Arwen yet? She had seen her around. Now she really _did _put the others to shame. Knocked all those beautiful elves into a cocked hat. Which really was saying something. _And_ she had chosen a mortal. Wow.

Penny was wandering out of the door and about to start up the steps, mulling over how attractive or not Aragorn was and what Arwen might see in him, when she felt a hand on her arm and someone say her name. She turned.

"Mireth! Aiya!"

The elleth beamed. Mireth was on her way in to the hall to eat so she spoke, with hand gestures, and Penny understood that they would meet in the garden by the fountain.

Presumably it would then be weaving time. Fun, fun, fun!

'No,' Penny thought to herself as she climbed the steps, 'I will not show my ignorance. Besides, they are looking after me: feeding me and clothing me. The least I can do is help out a bit and make myself useful. If I can learn a skill or two I won't feel quite so much like a spare part who's under everyone's feet all the bloody time.' Even if weaving _did_ sound as dull as ditchwater.

As she turned down a corridor there was the sound of running from behind her. Running and giggling.

Two small figures rushed past her. There was a shout of "Raz! Kali! Ai, Elbereth!"

Penny grinned and turned to see Frodo shaking his head in exasperation but with a smile on his face. Sam was beside him clearly trying not to laugh. The two saw her, came to join her and the three then walked to the gardens together. Penny wondered how long it would take for Gandalf to turn up.

Frodo was talking. He was clearly saying something about Sam because he was gesturing to him and Sam was beaming, and something else about 'garden'. Was he telling her Sam was a gardener? Was Sam going to help out in the garden?

Frodo could see she hadn't understood.

"With you. And Mireth. And Celebdor. In the garden. Poor Ban just can't sit still knowing there is work to be done out there and he and Celebdor are already as thick as thieves and swopping tricks."

"Well, I wouldn't go that far, Mister Maura."

"I would. You two barely stopped talking all the way through supper last night. And afterwards. I dread to think what you'll be like once you start working together."

Frodo's smile was affectionate, though. Sam was clearly delighted at the idea of getting his hands stuck in soil again.

"Aiya, Pen-ii." /_I am sure you already know Ban is quite the gardener, do you not_/

Penny grinned. Yup. As sure as eggs is eggs: she was talking to the hobbits and now Gandalf had suddenly appeared.

"Yes, Mithrandir. He will become famous for it." She stopped, suddenly, realising what she had said.

/_Careful, Pen-ii. No harm done, but you need to be more cautious nonetheless. Even with me._/ Gandalf said silently to her.

She nodded and felt tears prick her eyes suddenly. "It's just... Well, if truth be told, Gandalf, it's _because_ it's you. I don't think I would say such a thing to anyone except you."

And it was true. He was the only one who could truly communicate with her, as well as the fact that he was... well... he was GANDALF, for goodness sake!

Gandalf nodded. /_I understand Pen-ii. I just don't want you to become used to saying such things and then let something slip that it would be better I did not know._/

"Yes, Mithrandir. Goheno nin."

Gandalf smiled. "Maura was saying that Ban is to join you in helping the gardens. He has been getting itchy fingers. Now Maura is definitely on the mend he has been persuaded that he can go off and enjoy himself now."

Penny couldn't help but grin. "They are very close, I know. It will help..." She stopped herself.

Gandalf looked at her. /_For that reason Ban was chosen. I am glad it was the right choice, though I never doubted it for a moment_./

They were coming out of the halls and down a path to the largest glade to have a fountain in it. Penny was delighted to see Bilbo seated on a bench, Pippin and Merry chatting busily to him already. She had not met Bilbo yet since he rarely joined them at mealtimes.

As she neared them with Mithrandir Bilbo stood and bowed.

"Gandalf. Lady Pen-ii, I am delighted to meet you properly at last. Maura has told me a little of you. He is helping you with Sindarin I understand?"

Penny bowed a little, having guessed something of what Bilbo had said.

"Bilba Labingi, it is an honour."

Bilbo smiled as Mithrandir translated and then sat down once more indicating for Mithrandir and Penny to join him. Frodo had a book with him but Bilbo quickly fell into conversation with him. Sam, Pippin and Merry were now off nearby chatting and laughing.

Penny turned to Gandalf. "Is there no class distinction between Raz and Kali and Ban? Ban is Maura's servant, isn't he? Or have things changed since they journeyed together?"

"There is some distinction. Kali and Raz are heirs to important positions in Sûza, as I am sure you do not need me to tell you. The Tûks, Brandagambas and Labingis are all important families there. Ban is different. But they are all friends and have known each other all their lives. It is true their journey here made them closer still and broke down the few barriers there may have been. Do not let them deceive you, though, Ban is a simple kuduk and happy enough with simple things. Nor is there anything wrong with that. It is for that very reason I love him, as do his fellow companions."

Penny nodded. Sam was certainly the more reserved of the three youngest hobbits. As much from his nature as his position she suspected.

Bilbo and Frodo had decided to go for a little stroll and, as she watched them, Penny murmured, "I can't believe I've just met him."

"Who? Bilba?"

She nodded. "He is very important to the story, as you well know. His journey to Erebor and finding the Ring is one whole book in itself. It is his story that we have: his version of the whole story from then onwards and through the War, that Maura continues and then Kali, I seem to remember. Kali or Raz but I think it's Kali, though it could be both. It becomes part of kuduk folklore and is handed down over the years till eventually it comes to us. To my time."

Gandalf looked both amused and astonished by this. "Bilba's account of things! Dear me!"

Penny laughed, "Well, yes. You do say his is not the most accurate portrayal of events somewhere. But Maura corrects quite a bit I think. As does Kali."

Gandalf muttered, "I should think so too!"

"I would like to hear your side of it all, Mithrandir. Your meeting with Thorin and how difficult it was to persuade him to take Bilba and what a nincompoop the dwarves thought him."

Gandalf, understanding the meaning asked, "'Nincompoop'? That is a word?"

Penny nodded.

"Hmm. I think I like it. 'Nincompoop' – it has a nice ring to it. 'Nin- com-POOP'. Ah! Very satisfying."

A ball whizzed past them, landing in a nearby rosebush.

"Razanur Tûk, you 'nincompoop'! Have more care where you are throwing things!" Gandalf boomed at him.

There was a brief silence and then, in the distance, a small voice said, sounding slightly confused, "'Nincompoop', Gandalf?"

"Yes, 'nincompoop'. Describes you perfectly, Raz."

Penny started giggling uncontrollably.

She was still giggling when Mireth arrived. Gandalf, his eyebrows waggling with amusement, bade them farewell and went off to explain to Pippin exactly what a 'nincompoop' was and why he was one.

Weaving was not nearly as bad as she had feared. She was not any good at it but she tried.

Mireth showed her the huge looms on which cloth was made. All very impressive. Then she showed her, nearby, a massive barn filled with huge vats of dye and cloths, wools and threads drying from ropes strung across the space.

Penny was given a frame loom. It was a rectangle with nails or pins across the top and bottom edges. She was shown how to thread it up so creating the 'weft' and then she was shown how to weave.

Mireth indicated bags nearby filled with strips of material, some near rags. Penny looked puzzled. Mireth pointed at her skirts and said two words, one of them 'dress'. Old clothes. Cut into pieces. This was what she would use first of all and only then progress onto other things.

The weaving was done by hand, no machinery to lift up alternate threads, and back-breaking. The frame she had been given wasn't too large compared to others. It leant against one wall and was about four foot by three. She had a stool to sit on but to start off with she had to sit on the floor as she worked since it was so low down. Several other elleths were working next to her. First of all she watched them work, then they offered her to try on theirs. She noticed that with every one they undid all her work when they thought she wasn't looking. At least they tried to be discrete and made encouraging noises at her.

Then it was her turn. She had a bag of rags, a thing a bit like a comb to push down the weft once she had threaded it in and out of the warp, and a long, flat stick that was threaded under and over the warp and could be turned on its side (so raising all the threads running over it) and making at least going one way across the loom a lot quicker.

It became fairly clear that she was pulling everything too tight. Rather than leave it like that she pulled it all out and started again. And again.

She could feel her back aching so she had to stop in the end having achieved only a few inches in thickness of woven rags. The elleths had been watching her and been impressed by her conscientiousness and nodded their approval when she had pulled the ribbons of cloth out and started anew each time.

Mireth made it clear that this was now designated _her_ loom. No one else would touch it. So she could come back whenever she wanted, if she wanted, and continue in her own time. She nodded. Fair enough. Even if she never did it again she would finish this one at least.

Dusk was falling as they made their way back to the halls. Mireth was saying something about horses and Lindir. Penny was not sure what, though, so she made brushing motions and said 'horse' then pointed at her eye and said 'Lindir' to indicate he had been watching her and teaching her. Mireth nodded.

"Celebdor and Lindir are friends," said Mireth.

Penny nodded since 'mellon' was a word she did not need to be taught. She had realised that over lunch as the two had chatted amiably over the top of her head.

"Me." Penny pointed at herself. "At lunch." She made eating motions and then said 'today'. She then made a horizontal circular motion with her finger as she said, "Ellon." She pointed next to herself as she said, "Lindir." She pointed opposite in front of herself, "Celebdor." Then, pointing at every other 'seat' beside her, "Ellon, ellon, ellon. Me?" She pointed to herself again and then put her hands to her cheeks, shook her head and looked down to indicate being utterly overwhelmed by the maleness of it all.

Mireth roared with laughter. "Ah! Poor Pen-ii!"

Penny excused herself to go and do some 'quill practice' for Erestor's lesson tomorrow. She lit two lanterns from the torches in the hallway outside her room and sat at the small table in her room.

She tried to keep it all as neat as possible: straight lines and small letters even if it meant they were less legible that they might be. Ink splots didn't help either. Erestor was not going to be impressed. Still, she pressed on.

God, it was like being four all over again! Row upon row of letter forming. Bloody ridiculous! She was twenty-three for God's sake! Twenty- three, with a job, a flat, and a boyfriend! ...

...Okay, she had to admit 'a dweeb who she had failed to not sleep with once when she had got seriously hammered' did not really count as 'a boyfriend'.

She sighed and laid down her quill for a few minutes, rubbing her thumb into the palm of her hand to try and relieve the cramp. She looked at her fingers to realise they were covered in ink. JUST like being back at school. She shook her head.

Odd. She was not missing home anymore. She had not thought of it for a day or two. Now she let herself think about it she kind of missed mum. Kind of.

She felt vaguely guilty that she didn't miss her brother at all but then she strongly suspected, were their situations reversed, he wouldn't have missed her either. She also did not miss her job, rush-hour hell on the London tube, or taxes. Or bovril. Or anchovies.

She did miss chocolate, though. And ice-cream. And marmite on toast. And...

God, she was hungry!

A bell rang. Supper. She stared at her paper. Half finished and it looked a right bloody mess. She groaned. She would do the rest later.

* * *

Author's Notes: 

Lindir is the only named elf who comments on Bilbo's Earendil poem that he recites in the Hall of Fire the night before the Council of Elrond is held. And if you want to read Gandalf's version of the beginning of The Hobbit then you'll find it in Unfinished Tales.

_Bain_ - beautiful

_Ellon_ - male elf

For all non-Brits: Marmite is much like the Australian 'Vegemite' (which I strongly suspect I cannot spell) – a yeast spread. People either consider it the nectar of the gods or think that it tastes like cat vomit. There is no in between. It is a love or hate thing. Bovril is similar (though you can – horror of horrors – make it into a hot drink!) and is, of course, the work of the devil.

A Further Author's Note (apologies for length): Just wanted to thank everyone, as ever, for their kind reviews. I wanted to add that Penny won't join the Fellowship not simply, or even primarily, because that would make her Sue-ish. If I could think of a genuine reason why she WOULD go with them then she would because, frankly, it would be interesting to see it all through her eyes. But there is no earthly reason why she would.

The journey of the Ring is of paramount importance: the fate of everyone and the entire Middle Earth rests on it. There is very little chance it will succeed. Why would they endanger its success still further by having a complete stranger, a female, and one who has no skills in combat or any strengths go with them (and let you remember that, oh 'tenth walker fic'-writer)? Even if it was decided to definitely send her to Lothlorien her going with the Fellowship as far as there is not feasible for the same reasons – and do not forget they did not know they would be going to Lothlorien for certain when they set out from Rivendell since there was no decision made as to which route they would take.

Given that the Nazgul have been chasing them already, as well as Saruman's treachery and blatant lusting after the One (Gandalf long suspected Saruman's motives – read Unfinished Tales it's all there: Saruman even desecrated the body of Isildur! shakes fist at Saruman), they will be the target of everything going. They will be lucky to make it. The last thing they need is someone of no use going with them – a dead weight in effect. That the three hobbits were to accompany Frodo was a potentially hazardous decision given their inexperience in battle. As it turns out, as Gandalf knew and Elrond suspected, it was entirely the right one but they were still taking a chance.

Given her reaction to seeing elves and hobbits for the first time, can you imagine what she would do when faced with orcs or the Balrog? Coronary arrest at worst, and soiling herself at best. She is also a complete stranger, don't forget: unknown to them all. All the Fellowship are known (most and possibly all are indeed well-known) to Gandalf and/or Elrond.

So sending Penny with them, even to Lothlorien, would be unthinkable and, therefore, completely unrealistic.

She could be sent to Lothlorien separately and meet them there, which I was thinking about I will admit, **_b__ut_** :

1) The Fellowship cannot leave till the fate of the Nazgul are known. Nor would Penny leave before then either, therefore. Once the Fellowship do leave it will be mid-winter: not the time to be crossing mountain ranges so while the Fellowship HAVE to leave, Penny does not – they would wait till spring to send her.

2) Wolves and orcs and who knows what else are filling the area around Imladris even before the scouts are sent out so it would be unreasonably dangerous to send her to Lothlorien right away (at the end of December). And why do so when she can stay where she is at least for the time being? Why risk her life, and that of anyone accompanying her, for no good reason?

Yes, it would make a good story but the whole point of this fic was realism. There is no reason why Elrond would send her with the Nine Walkers, or before spring. And it's all over at the end of March so it then becomes a moot point.

Sorry, guys. smiles apologetically It's realism first with anti-Mary-Sue a very close second. Or at least that's what I am trying to achieve. Hope I am getting somewhere near both.

Oh, and that goes for anything else everyone has expressed an interest in seeing happening: if it is a realistic possibility (and doesn't make it Mary Sue) then it will be considered. Otherwise: not a cat in hell's chance. grin Not that I am not very grateful for the suggestions and I am very pleased people are taking such an interest as to express opinions as to what they would like to see. All suggestions are considered and taken on board. I just thought it only fair to let you all know what my thinking was on all this. :)


	18. Sense and Sensibilities

_Please note:_ Some of you may not have realised but part of chapter 17 was re-written thanks to NancyBrooke pointing out/reminding me that Boromir lost his horse on the journey north. Therefore Penny could not see his saddle. So that bit was cut (I know, I liked it too, but canon is canon). Instead, in chapter 17, she asks Lindir which one is Boromir's saddle. Lindir makes it clear Boromir doesn't have one there and that she is very odd for asking. Hence, her asking Gandalf about it in this chapter. :)

* * *

**Chapter 18** - _"Sense and Sensibilities"_

Penny was in the Hall of Fire later that evening, listening to the songs and the chatter around her. Mireth was talking nineteen to the dozen next to her and Penny was happy enough to let the babble wash over her.

She felt a touch on her shoulder. It was Erestor. He beckoned her to come with him and, as they passed a group consisting of the hobbits, some of the dwarves and Mithrandir, he asked Gandalf to join him also. Penny was led out into the corridor and then into a small antechamber.

Elrond was in the room, leaning against a mantlepiece with a goblet of wine in his hand. He looked up and smiled as they entered. "Ah, Pen-ii. Good. There is someone I believe you have not been properly introduced to yet. Most remiss of us." Penny looked at the chair he was indicating near him and saw Arwen smiling kindly at her.

"Pen-ii. I am glad to meet you properly at last. Father should have introduced us long before. It is only because of something I let slip just now that he has rectified it. You must forgive us if we seemed rude."

As Gandalf translated this Erestor gestured towards a chair for Penny and Elrond poured her some wine as she took her place.

"I am most honoured to meet you, hiril nin. Aiya." Penny's brow furrowed. "Something you said? I don't understand."

Arwen laughed, but before she could reply Elrond spoke. "It would seem her brothers could not keep her in ignorance."

"Ah," said Gandalf, suddenly understanding what all this was about. "It would seem, Pen-ii, that Lady Arwen knows your story. From Elladan and Elrohir."

Penny looked at Arwen in astonishment. She was absolutely speechless. Why this hit so hard she wasn't sure. Actually, yes, she was. She knew exactly why. Arwen was female. She was an elf, sure, but she was female. The first female to have any idea of what she was going through. The compassion she suddenly saw in Arwen's face brought tears to her eyes.

Arwen was speaking very softly. "I can have no idea what it must be like for you, or what you went through before it was known or understood, Pen- ii. I have wanted to say something to you all this time but was waiting for my father to inform me which he failed to do till I mentioned it to him myself." She flashed an exasperated glance at her father. "I understand he wanted as few people to know as possible, and you must not blame him for his decision, but you also needed to have a female who understood. I think that is, in part, why my brothers told me though we are also very close and rarely keep secrets from each other. I confess I had sensed something strange about you even before they told me. It would not surprise me if others here sense it also. Indeed, I am sure they do, though they will not know what it means. You seem utterly foreign to us. More so than humans normally do. Does she not?" Arwen looked about her as she said this and there was murmured agreement from the other three.

If anything hearing that just made things worse for Penny. So she really _was_ a freak. They were all picking up 'weirdo' vibes from her. She was determined she wasn't going to cry. She wasn't. She'd just started feeling a little settled, just started forgetting about it all to a certain extent, and now this.

She looked at Gandalf. "So everyone, or every elf at least, will have sensed something peculiar about me?"

Gandalf did his best to explain, "Not exactly. Possibly one or two. Not everyone is strong in such things, though all elves have such abilities to a certain extent."

Elrond, Erestor and Arwen, listening to Gandalf as he spoke, realised what her question had been and what her concerns were.

Lord Elrond smiled gently, trying to reassure her. "You must not worry, Pen-ii. Often elves can sense that someone is different, perhaps from a culture or place utterly alien to them and that is how you will seem to most of them. That is all. No more than that, I can assure you. It is possible one or two will sense something stronger but even they will not be able to define it nor will they be concerned, given that you are here as my guest and with my approval."

Penny nodded. It made her feel very uncomfortable to know all this, though.

"How are you finding Imladris, Pen-ii?" Arwen was trying to change the subject.

"I.. it is wonderful. Really." They laughed. "Why do you laugh? Just to be here, to be..." She sighed. "I can't explain what it's like to be here. It's like a dream in many ways. I have to stop from pinching myself at times. Not just that, but to meet or see all of you..."

Arwen nodded, "It must be very strange. If I were to wake up in the middle of Gondolin or Nargothrond tomorrow it would perhaps be similar."

Penny nodded. She nearly added 'Or Valinor' and caught herself just in time. Thank God! _Not_ the best thing to say given Arwen would not be going with her father...

"And how are Erestor's lessons coming along? He is not being too hard on you, I trust?" Arwen grinned at the Counsellor.

Penny laughed, "Not at all. He's very patient with me." Erestor nodded in appreciation at this as Gandalf translated it. "It's true. Le hannon, Erestor. He's not the only one, though. Mithrandir will tell you: every meal time anyone sitting next to me is testing my Sindarin, Maura in particular. I have Lindir, Mireth, Eleniel and Celebdor all teaching me things as well. Too much, sometimes. It's hard to remember it all."

"It will come. Give it time." Arwen stopped, considering Penny for a moment. "So you know what our futures hold. That must be hard indeed for you Pen-ii. I, as well as Mithrandir and my father here, can have some idea of what that can be like. But we can never know with certainty. Not like you."

Penny was looking troubled, her brow furrowed. She really didn't like thinking about it, or being reminded of it.

"Forgive me, Pen-ii. I did not want to make you feel ill at ease. I only wished to let you know that I can understand. Or a little at least."

Penny nodded. "I know. I would expect, in some ways, that you would have such a skill, as Galadriel's granddaughter, but it is known of you." She hesitated.

Arwen, watching her, smiled softly as if she knew what Penny would have said. "Go on, Pen-ii. I do not think you will offend any by continuing."

"Did you not say to Aragorn when you first met, when he said he thought you were Luthien, that your fate might not be dissimilar to hers?"

There was an intake of breath from Gandalf. As he translated there were mutterings and gasps from Elrond and Erestor but Arwen, having heard the names and guessed what she had said, simply broadened her smile. She nodded. "I did indeed, Pen-ii. So even that is known, is it?"

Penny nodded. "Oh yes. You and Aragorn are very well known." She thought, 'And thousands of PMFs are desperately jealous where I come from.'

Arwen raised an eyebrow at her. Penny looked at her curiously. 'Dear God. She didn't inherit THAT trick from her granny too, did she?' Arwen smiled, the smile quickly widening into a smirk and then a grin. 'Bloody Nora, she DID!' Penny started giggling and Arwen joined her.

"I shall have to be careful what I think when I am round you, then," said Penny.

Arwen shook her head as Gandalf translated. "Do not worry, Pen-ii. I can sometimes get a sense of what someone is thinking or about to say, but nothing clear. Nothing exact. Not like the Lady Galadriel. Or Mithrandir. It's just... well... that was very clear and concerned me personally, that was all."

As Gandalf translated this, Penny could see both Erestor and Elrond, but Elrond in particular, looking intrigued. Hoo boy. She hoped Arwen would not explain because that could open up a _huge_ can of worms. Explaining the concept of the films might not be so difficult – much like a play or something – but fanfic...! She could just imagine it: 'Well, Elrond... umm.. how shall I put this? There ARE people around who would give their right eye for one night with you. With any elf. In fact Glorfindel's up there too, along with both your sons, but it's mostly Legolas. Every time. Poor bugger.'

No. She didn't think so.

"So Aragorn is the hero of your story?" Arwen was asking.

"One of them," said Penny diplomatically. "He is, after all, the heir to the throne. As well as one of the Fellowship. Very heroic stuff." She was having to bite her tongue and was trying to choose her words very careful. She had nearly said 'future king' except that might have told them he did actually become king.

Arwen could see she was getting uncomfortable and raised her hand in apology. "Forgive me, Pen-ii. I understand it may be difficult to even speak of the past or the present without reference to what you know will come afterwards. Still, I wished for Erestor to bring you to meet me now so at least we will no longer be strangers. If there is anything you need, you are to let my father know. Or me if that might be easier."

Penny looked at her. She wondered if... did she know about what had happened yesterday with Erestor? Had he said something? Unlikely. Mireth possibly? Or Eleniel? She got the feeling that she knew, though, and she was grateful for the offer. It would indeed be wonderful to have a female around who knew what her full story was, not that Penny wasn't grateful for the friendship Mireth and Eleniel had shown her by any means, but having a female on side was a relief.

The next few days passed into an easy routine. Mornings were spent first with Sindarin lessons followed by a few hours at the stables with Lindir who was getting her to brush or feed the same horse every time Penny noticed. If she had time before lunch she would do any writing practice she had for Erestor, a little weaving or else some embroidery. This last was a project she had been given by Mireth. She had given her a square of linen and a frame to keep the material tight and Penny had to practice the various stitches she had taught her, much like a sampler.

Afternoons were spent weaving or gardening, though she often had time to wander, which she did now Lord Elrond had given her permission to do so.

The tanners she didn't bother with. Watching people scrape bits of animal skin she really didn't need to see, thank you very much. The blacksmithing was amazing, though and in the buildings and workshops nearby to the blacksmiths were the carpenters, potters, silversmiths and jewellers. Slowly Penny found herself going there more and more often if she had any free time. She didn't think she would be any good at any of it but it was all fascinating to watch.

Most of those working there were males. Any elleths who were there tended to concentrate mainly on detailed decoration. Penny was astonished at the level of intricacy and detail the carpenters managed to achieve with both inlay and marquetry. Over the next few weeks she would watch as a table top would be carved out and inlaid with tiny slivers and pieces of different coloured wood, or even metal or mother of pearl on occasion, till a scene of astonishing beauty was visible: a waterfall, mountains, and birds in the trees. It was not dissimilar amongst the smiths: working in silver, copper, brass and even gold. She now understood that Elladan's miruvor flask, while stunning, was by no means unique.

This was not a production line. It was a slow careful process of creation for each item and the numbers working in each workshop were not great – five or six at most and in some it was less - yet the detail and beauty was all the greater for the time taken over each item.

The barn where the carpenters worked smelled wonderful and the floor was covered in wood chips. Work was not busy here: they took their time to both create a piece and then decorate it and, Penny soon realised, one elf would often be responsible for the entire process: from building a chair itself, for example, all the way through to carving it or inlaying it and then staining or varnishing it. There were smaller items such as boxes carved in such a way that they were like doilies – full of holes as if made of wooden, knotted string – as well as figurines, utensils (such as spoons) or arrow shafts. She was gratified that none of them minded her presence but welcomed her smiling, pulling up chairs or stools for her to watch them as they worked, and it was the same in each of the workshops and barns.

Slowly, as they all got to know her, she was given little jobs to do or given 'a go' on one tool or another. She couldn't be sure but she rightly suspected that she was never given a job on anything important. Often it was a piece of wood too knotted for use, or the sawn-off end from something else. But even so she planed and drilled and even whittled, though quite what this last achieved she had no idea. She had made a very sharp point on a very short stick. To what end heaven alone knew but everyone nodded and smiled at her nonetheless.

She loved watching the turning. That didn't happen every time she was there. You sat at a table, with the piece being worked on – whether a bowl or a chair leg – in front of you and a lathe held against it. Attached to the lathe by a rope was, from one direction, a treadle and, from the other direction, a bendy pole that was wedged firmly into the ground. Press the treadle and the lathe turned on the piece of wood; release and the pole (bent by the action of the rope pulling on it as the lathe turned) straightened so turning the lathe back in the other direction so you could then press the treadle once more. The lathe only 'worked', therefore, when the treadle was being pressed but in this way they could turn very well indeed.

They offered her a go on it but she refused, realising it would need a lot of skill and practise. Fun to watch, though: to see a bowl appear out of a solid block of wood. She noticed that often chair legs or similar were turned on green wood and then left in a pile unused for quite a while. Only weeks later would a turned leg become part of a chair or table.

Much of the work done by the carpenters, however, was basic everyday things. Wicker work was done here also, so baskets were made, fences and gates that needed replacing for the farmland further up the valley, chair seats were woven from rushes, low wicker panels for use in the kitchen garden, and barrels. Loads of barrels. They were the product of the combined efforts of the carpenters and blacksmiths and it was a job that took the several days.

Over the coming weeks she was introduced to basketry and discovered she wasn't too bad at it. Or at least, unlike most things, she didn't completely balls it up first time, even if it wasn't perfect. She made a complete mess on the potter's wheel, but had so much fun with it that she kept coming back time and again till at last she was showing some signs of improvement. She was pleased to finding some skills she enjoyed practising at last. She was really getting into the gardening as well and her writing skill with a quill was improving.

She'd suddenly got the knack of it and Erestor now found her 'writing out' exercises had vocabulary lists on the back of them. Everything was written in her own language since she didn't always know for sure how something was spelt in Tengwar, though she always hazarded a guess. Erestor would correct any he saw mis-spelt but he was pleased that she was at least trying to make a note of the new words she was learning. He could always tell where she had been the previous day by the words written down: vegetables, garden tools or flower names; the names of various metals or woods, 'hammer', 'chisel' or 'saw'; colours, material names, 'loom', clothing items. She was learning, slowly. The interesting part would be the verbs.

It was nearly two weeks since Halbarad had left and Penny was hoping that today or tomorrow she would be able to bid a joyous farewell to the belt contraption for a month. It was just after lunch and it was raining. Had been all morning too. It was pouring down, in fact, and Penny really didn't feel like gardening or running through the downpour to the carpenters and smiths or even to her weaving. She was in one of the antechambers, alternating between reading her Sindarin lesson (she was up to lesson five) and her sewing. One of the carpenters had given her a little box, covered in carved butterflies, to keep her threads and needlework in. She loved it to bits.

Mireth was with her, also working on some embroidery, and Eleniel was busy darning a hole in a shawl. There was a fire lit in the room and quite a few of the guests and residents were here, seated near the fire, some near the three large windows with window-seats, others at chairs and tables ranged about the room. The dwarves were here, as were the Mirkwood elves. Mithrandir had just left and there was no sign of Boromir: no doubt with Elrond as seemed to be his wont. He had been at lunch, though.

Penny felt kind of sorry for him. He got on well enough with the elves it appeared but he was a bit of a lone element there. No one had come with him from Gondor but also all the men had left to search for the Nazgûl. She had spoken to Gandalf about it.

"I presume Boromir didn't go because he doesn't know the terrain?"

Gandalf had nodded. "He wanted to leave with them but was persuaded against it. Even he had to admit it would be easier and faster for the Dûnedain and elves of Imladris to search without him. He is a sensible and intelligent man. He understood well enough. Besides he is also a guest here and Lord Elrond would not hear of a guest undertaking such a dangerous mission."

Still. Poor sod. Wandering about kicking his heels. Must be quite trying. If she hadn't promised herself...

No. Out of the question. Absolutely.

She had then asked Gandalf about his saddle. Gandalf had looked surprised at her question. "Did that not make it into your stories, then, Pen-ii? He lost his horse as he crossed the river Gwathló near Thabad."

Penny had looked puzzled for a minute and then it dawned on her. Of course he had! She had completely forgotten. "I forgot, Gandalf. It's such a minor detail amongst so many in the stories that it totally slipped my mind." She paused, considering. "His journey was quite an astonishing one, wasn't it? That our stories do make clear. A feat of bravery and heroism in itself because the Greenway is in disrepair and the bridges collapsed. Poor Boromir."

Gandalf nodded. "Yes, indeed. He had a very hard time of it. You saw him the morning he arrived, did you not? One of the scouts sent out to look for the kuduk came across him wandering a few miles South of here, completely lost. It was another reason why it was out of the question that he could immediately go back out with the others to look for the Nazgûl: he needed to rest. He lost near all he had also: his pack, his food. Elrond has clothed him as I am sure you have realised."

Penny nodded in her turn. Now it all made sense. It also explained why he had reeked quite so badly that first day when she had nearly run into him. He probably hadn't changed any part of his clothing in weeks.

He had taken to eating near Gandalf at mealtimes and was clearly getting to know the hobbits. It meant that he and Penny knew each other well enough now that they would nod, smile and greet each other. He had grinned the first breakfast he had seen Frodo go through her Sindarin with her for Erestor's lesson. She now found him pointing out things to her in Sindarin at the dinner table also. Quite why she was surprised that his Sindarin was so good she had no idea. He seemed to speak very fluently and easily with those around him. She had asked about that too.

"Gandalf? Boromir is thought of as the warrior and his brother as the gentler, more scholastic one. Is that a fair assessment?"

Gandalf had smiled, "In very general terms, yes indeed. But do not forget Boromir is the eldest son of the Steward of Gondor. One day it may be he will, in turn, be Steward himself. He has been trained and educated to a high standard, as one befitting his station. Though his brother showed more inclination in that regard, Boromir is no dolt. His Sindarin, if heavily accented, is more than passable."

Penny was pleased to hear this. Why, she was not sure. It was nice to know him as such a rounded figure. She had watched him a few times from a distance. Knowing what she knew meant she felt more drawn to him than the others in some respects, though it equally meant she kept her distance from him as much as she could. He seemed to get on well with the dwarves and spent much of the evenings, if not with Elrond or Gandalf, in their company with huge mugs of ale.

Ah, yes. The dwarves. That was an interesting situation. Very interesting.

Penny couldn't put her finger on it. There was no tension between them and the elves, but there was no love lost either. Any elves who encountered them were courteous enough, as were the dwarves in their turn. Indeed, she had seen laughter and jokes being shared, but there was a definite vibe: as if neither side could completely relax. It could have been she imagined it. She doubted it, though.

Once she had seen the Mirkwood elves chatting with the dwarves in the Hall of Fire. It had been fairly obvious that Legolas and Gloín knew each other which Penny, thinking about it later, realised made a lot of sense. No doubt one or the other had met in diplomatic meetings between Erebor and Mirkwood she supposed. 'Puts a whole new twist on the Gimli-Legolas friendship,' she had thought.

The two groups were chatting even now, though only two of the Mirkwood elves were present (one of them Legolas) and only Gloin, his brother and another dwarf were in the antechamber.

The door opened and Gandalf came in with Bilbo, Frodo and Merry. As the only spare seats were near Penny and the two elleths, Gandalf steered Bilbo in that direction so he could sit. Mireth and Eleniel were standing, muttering excuses since they had jobs to attend to, so Penny found herself alone with Gandalf and the three hobbits as they chatted.

"Mithrandir, I would still love to know about Erebor and Smaug. Since this afternoon is stretching ahead of me, would now be a good time?"

Before Gandalf could reply Bilbo, having heard 'Erebor' and 'Smaug' had leapt in, "Ah, yes, Pen-ii. Gandalf told me you wanted to hear about my adventures. And very interesting they are too, might I add."

Frodo groaned, "Now she's done it. We'll never hear the end of it, you do realise this, Gandalf? You should have warned her." He turned to Pen-ii, "You will be stuck here for hours now." He grinned.

Penny giggled when Mithrandir translated. "Well, if it's not a good idea, another time perhaps?"

"No, no, no! Now's as good a time as any!" insisted Bilbo as Gandalf explained what Penny had meant.

Penny was then treated to the most entertaining afternoon she had had so far. Bilbo started off easily enough, though Penny clocked the rolling eyes, shared giggles and smirks between Frodo and Merry as he did so. Clearly they knew this story backwards. She noticed they were staying to listen to it again, though.

It wasn't long before the trouble started. Gandalf, busy translating every now and then, started interrupting Bilbo, clearly correcting him. Bilbo hadn't even got past the point in the story of he and the dwarves leaving Hobbiton. Gandalf explained to Penny, "I would not tell him the entire truth to his face but it was not nearly as simple as he believes, as you well know."

Penny grinned, "No, indeed. Thorin didn't think much of him at all, did he? It took all your powers of persuasion to get them to take him along once they had met him, didn't it?"

Gandalf nodded, grinning. In the meantime, Bilbo had called over to Gloín asking for his opinion. Gloín came over to join them and Penny was introduced, at last, to some of the dwarves. She bowed and greeted them, sticking to 'aiya' since at least that could be translated.

It then became a three-way story telling between Gandalf, Gloín and Bilbo with each interrupting and correcting the others much to the amusement of Frodo, Merry and Penny, as well as the small crowd that had now gathered round them. Bilbo was clearly getting quite exasperated with it all and there were several bouts of "Who is telling this story?" and "That's not how looked from MY neck of the woods!" with Frodo adding a "Does it really matter?" only to get such looks from the three story-tellers that he kept his mouth firmly shut from then on, but not before he and Merry had exchanged a look and collapsed into giggles.

The next major stalling point was Mirkwood. Or, more specifically, King Thranduil. Bilbo and Gloín glossed over a large part of the story at that point, Penny realised, and when she looked at Gandalf to ask for an explanation she saw he was grinning at Legolas who was grinning back.

"That's not quite how my father remembers it," Legolas said, still grinning.

"I am sure it isn't, but that is besides the point," Gloín grumbled. "Besides, I do not think it is the place or time for prolonged discussion."

"It isn't quite how I remember it, if truth be told," Legolas continued. "But you are right. This is neither the time nor the place."

As Gandalf translated for her she could see Legolas's eyes were sparkling with amusement. He'd been there! Of course, he would have been. That's how Gloín and he knew each other, presumably. Or how they first met, anyway.

As dusk fell outside they were reaching the Battle of the Five Armies. Legolas was joining in with the story-telling as well now and telling of the march north of the army of Mirkwood. Penny's eyes were wide.

"You were there, Lord Legolas?"

Legolas waited patiently as Gandalf translated. "But of course, Lady Pen- ii. Where else would I be other than fighting by my father's side?" He had seemed a little confused by her question but affable enough.

As the dinner bell rang the conversation had fallen into a general chatter. There were gaps. Big gaps. But understandable ones. No mention made of the trolls' gold, though they had mentioned Sting and Glamdring. No mention, of course, of the Ring or Gollum.

Penny noticed that Gandalf did not speak of Dol Guldur or the attack on it.

On the way to the dining hall Gloín, walking on the other side of Gandalf from Penny was asking, "So you had heard of Smaug's fall and the restoration of Erebor in your country, Pen-ii?"

Penny nodded. She could feel Gandalf's gaze upon her and suddenly worried that she had drawn attention to herself by asking for the tale. Gandalf would have stopped her, though, would not have joined in himself if that were case, wouldn't he?

"Where exactly is your country, Pen-ii? I gather it is far."

He hadn't meant anything by it. He was intrigued. No-one seemed to know where she came from. Elrond clearly did, and Mithrandir, but neither were giving anything away. Gandalf quickly interjected.

"She does not know. She is clearly not from here but she has forgotten everything of her past. Bumps on the head can do that sort of thing. She was in a dazed and confused state when Halbarad found her. We are helping her as best we can, Gloín. Time may tell. Or may not. You never know with this sort of thing."

Gloín nodded. Penny wondered what Gandalf had said, since Gloin had clearly addressed his question to her, but whatever it was Gloín wasn't expecting her to reply any more. He simply smiled kindly at her and nodded. "I am sorry to hear that, Pen-ii. Most difficult for you, I am sure. If you will excuse me." He headed off towards his companions.

"What was that about? What did you tell him, Mithrandir?"

"He asked where you were from, Pen-ii. I said that you have lost your memory."

"Ah. Okay." Penny grinned. 'Good thinking, Batman!' she thought.

"He was most sympathetic and moved to hear of it," Gandalf continued.

As they entered the dining hall Legolas, who had been walking behind them and had heard the entire exchange, was giving Penny a rather odd look.

* * *

Author's Note: 'PMF' means 'Pervy Man Fancier' and covers anyone letching after book or movieverse men from LOTR (yes, there ARE people who fancy the book characters: personally, I go into cold sweats at the thought of Tuor - Sexiest Man in Gondolin). Not dissimilar are the PHFs (Run, Frodo, run!) and the PEFs ("Legggyyyy!") of fandom. grin

Just a few other points in response to reviews (thank you so much to everyone who has done so) and queries:

1) di-sama: apologies if I didn't make it clear enough, but look again at chapters 3, 4, & 5 and in particular the author's notes to chapter 3 (as well as the review I posted for chapter 4 on in reply to Ainu Laire) since that will explain it to you a little. :)

Yes, the hobbits' names were not actually Frodo, Bilbo, Meriadoc, Samwise or Peregrin. Instead think of those names as translations, by Tolkien, of their actual names: "Frodo Baggins" - Maura Labingi; "Bilbo Baggins" - Bilba Labingi; "Samwise Gamgee" - Banazir (Ban) Galpsi; "Peregrin Took" - Razanur (Raz) Tûk; "Meriadoc Brandybuck" - Kalimac (Kali) Brandagamba. I have confined use of their real names to direct speech only so readers at least know who is speaking/being spoken to/referred to without too much confusion (I hope).

Tolkien himself explained all this in the Appendices (at the back of ROTK). The language most people have in common in Middle Earth is 'Westron' (also known as the 'Common Tongue'). Everyone had different dialects but it was, essentially, all one language: so hobbits from the Shire, the Rohirrim and men from Gondor or Dale could, more or less, understand each other if they met.

Think of 'Lord of the Rings' as if it were a real book about a real story: a real book actually written by Bilbo and Frodo and then added to by Merry and Pippin. It would have been written by them in their own native language: the language of Westron. Then, several thousand years later, this 'ancient book' is found and translated into modern English by Tolkien. Everything (names and place names) that is in Elvish is kept as it is but everything in 'Westron' is translated – and that includes names and place names.

Bree was not called 'Bree', the Shire was not called 'the Shire' (it is actually called 'Sûza'), Hobbiton was not called 'Hobbiton', Rivendell was not called 'Rivendell', nor are hobbits called 'hobbits'. They called themselves 'kuduk'. A few things we know the Westron for but most things we do not. The reason why the Dûnedain's names and Gondorian names (e.g. Halbarad, Aragorn, Boromir, Faramir) remain unchanged is because their names were not Westron but Sindarin (reflecting their Numenorean heritage and it's also why they are physically similar: tall, dark with grey eyes - just like Elrond).

Read Appendix F (II – On Translation) in 'Return of the King', written by JRRT himself, and you'll understand it much better than I can explain it. :) If you are really interested there is even more on all this in the 'History of Middle Earth' (volume 12 - Peoples of Middle Earth) in the section called 'The Appendix on Languages' (which is where I got all five hobbit's names from as well as Barliman Butterbur's).

2) There is some confusion over my use of the phrase 'the world and his wife' in chapter 4. This means the same as 'everybody and his dog' (thanks Mum's the Word). It does not mean Halbarad is married. (Though he might be)

3) Thank you for all offers of 'beta-ing'. I already have a beta (as of a few days ago). cheers from the crowd and cries of 'at last' & 'about time' Chapter 18 onwards will be beta-ed before being posted. We are both slowly going through all previously posted chapters as well (THANK YOU bodldops – you are a star!). Thank you for your patience with my appalling typing and poor paragraphing skills. (Eng Lit degree? What Eng Lit degree? Lol). Don't think I don't proofread, I do, it's just I find it difficult to spot everything on typeset text so there is invariably stuff I miss.


	19. Another Fine Mess

**Chapter 19** - _"Another Fine Mess"_

Penny was blinking at Lindir. No. No, no, no. Oh, hell. Hell and damnation and...

She sighed. She knew it would come. She was just thankful that she no longer had the belt on now it had arrived.

She had turned up at the stables that morning to find, horror of horrors, the mare Lindir had been getting her to tend to most days was saddled and with a bridle. It could only mean one thing.

Lindir, seeing Penny approach, grinned broadly.

Penny now stood in front of him, arms folded, and looking less than impressed.

"Come along, Pen-ii. You knew it would happen sooner or later. The sooner you get on, the sooner you learn and the easier it will be." He was beckoning her over as he spoke.

Penny shook her head, resigning herself to the fact that there would be no escaping it. 'Besides,' she thought, 'Who knows how long I'll be stuck here. Probably no bad thing to learn how to deal with the main mode of transport, I guess.'

It was a thought that had been building recently. She did not know how she had got here, other than it was sudden. She supposed that it could just as easily happen again in the opposite direction but 'when' or even 'if' were completely unknowable. It was another one of those points she tried not to think about too hard.

She put one foot in the stirrup and hauled herself up. She could do that much herself, having had enough practice with Halbarad. She sat uncomfortably on the horse feeling like a sack of potatoes. She suspected she did not look too dissimilar to one as well.

Lindir was looking at her with an amused expression on his face. He shook his head and indicated for her to get down. Penny was baffled. She got off the horse only for Lindir to lift her and sit her sideways on the saddle. His strength surprised her since he had lifted her just as easily as Halbarad had done. It just went to show: these elves may not be broad-shouldered like the men, but they were just as muscular and strong.

Sitting sideways on the saddle she felt even more precarious.

Lindir took her feet and balanced them on a little padded step built into the bottom of the saddle. Then he handed her the reins and showed her how to hold them. Then he said something and the horse stepped forward. Penny screeched, really feeling like she was going to fall off. Lindir, saying something to the horse so it stopped as well as placing his hand on its neck to reassure it, looked at Penny with astonishment.

This was going to be more difficult than he thought.

Eventually the only way Penny would settle enough, though she was still very nervous and tense, was if he put a leading rein on the horse and walked in front. It was completely unnecessary given that the horse would follow him obediently wherever he led it without it, but even so. Better that than no riding lesson at all.

As she was led down to the gates and then towards the paddocks, Penny felt embarrassed. They passed several elves on their way, all of them looking at her, staring, nudging or giggling. She assumed it was them laughing at her clear inability to ride. In fact it was the leading rein which they found so funny since it could only be there to calm Penny. It was an indication of how frightened she was and how little she knew of horses.

After a little while of letting her go round in circles in a paddock, with the leading rope getting longer and longer, Lindir said a word and the knot on the rope undid itself. Penny squeaked in protest but Lindir gave her a stern look as he coiled up the rope. "No, Pen-ii. You are used enough to her by now."

The horse moved forward, Penny stiff and rigid in the saddle and holding the reins out in front of her as if they were burning her. Lindir came up to walk alongside them, making encouraging noises, though whether they were for the horse's benefit or hers Penny was not sure.

In the end it was not as bad as she had thought it would be. She did not have to do anything other than sit there since Lindir did it all, directing the horse as to when it should stop or move and which direction to take. This would continue in the same way for a few days till she began to feel more comfortable on a horse by herself. Then, and only then, would Lindir start showing her how to make the horse move for herself.

When it happened he showed her both what to do physically as well as taught her the Sindarin commands the elves used. Just as well to get her used to riding both horses trained by elves as well as those who were not. That way she would not have any problems riding either in the future. That was what he had been instructed by Lord Elrond.

So she would learn how to pull the reins, or gently tap with her foot against the horse's flank, and learn a word to say at the same time as each action. This was how she first learned the Sindarin for 'left' and 'right'. She realised that this was what Halbarad had done: used Sindarin speech as well as a physical action to direct his horse. She wondered if that was something the Dúnedain did as a matter of course or whether he too had been taught by the elves. Either was possible, she supposed.

As her confidence increased over the next few days and she started directing the horse herself, always under Lindir's watchful gaze, she sewed up the remains of her PJs one evening – now little more than shorts – and took to wearing them under her skirts for her riding lessons. The last thing she needed was to fall off a horse and have her skirts fly over her head without anything on underneath. Last thing Lindir would need too she suspected.

In the meantime life continued in the same routine it had settled into. She was a familiar figure round Rivendell now, as were the other guests. She often spent time sitting with Gandalf and the hobbits, who had taken to her somewhat and especially now Sam was helping out in the garden.

Her work in the garden led to her having regular contact with the cooks as well. Often she would wheel a barrow full of freshly dug vegetables to the kitchen door beside the sink and then unload them as they directed her. She found herself, occasionally, staying on in the kitchen after her work was finished in the gardens, to watch them cook. That in turn meant she was soon being taught things.

The first time this happened was actually one morning. She had decided to do some gardening before lunch for a change. As she passed by the kitchen door, Naurdir accosted her, waving two chickens at her. They needed plucking.

"Lord Elrond said you were to start helping in the kitchen, Pen-ii, well we need as many helping out as we can get for this kind of job." Mireth was already there and Celebdor. Even Merry and Sam had been roped in. They were all sat on stools, along with all the cooks, plucking.

Penny took the chicken, trying not to make too much of a face as she did so, and sat on an empty stool. It involved laying the bird across your lap and pulling. That was it as far as she could tell. She made a start, trying to ignore the way it's head flopped limply over her knee, and managed to get a few half-broken off feathers in her hand. This was tougher than it looked.

Someone nudged her. She looked beside her to see Merry grinning at her. "Look, Pen-ii, this is how it's done," and he proceeded to show her how to pull against the lie of the feathers, and with some force too. He worked in a steady rhythm. He nodded and smiled at her. "You try it."

She was hopeless but she struggled on valiantly nevertheless. She realised that everyone thought it a little odd that she was unused to such a task. Similarly there were glances and murmurs when she was roped in to helping the kitchen proper. Her turning green at the sight of anything resembling the animal it had once been, let alone any gutting or skinning, was treated with amusement, bafflement or mild annoyance.

It took every iota of her will power to do it. Over the coming days whenever she helped in the kitchen she gritted her teeth and forced herself to get used to such things. Soon enough she was helping to stuff hearts and scrape tripe, as vile as it was. The tripe stank. Really, really stank. It was disgusting. Added to which, the smell remained in her nostrils for the rest of the day and meant she hardly ate a thing at supper.

The grimace on her face as she cut open whole hearts was priceless. She ignored the grins and sniggering. "I'll show the arrogant buggers. I can _do _this. I _can_ do this. I _will_ bloody do this. Even if I have to run out of here vomiting," she was muttering as she took the minced livers, breadcrumb, onion and mushroom stuffing and wedged it in firmly. Ewwww! Oh God. She was touching...

She tried not to think about it. She just had to get used to it. She had to. Who knew how long she would be here, and if... if she was stuck here... well, she couldn't stay in Rivendell forever. She'd have to live amongst humans one day, she supposed, strike out on her own. Perhaps. She'd need to be able to cope with buying whole rabbits or unplucked chickens from the market. Or worse. Memories of Bree washed over her and she shuddered.

It got her thinking, though. What would happen to her? Within five months the War would be over. Then what? It was weird enough being here as it was. Thinking about what might be if she stayed in Middle Earth just terrified her. She felt happy enough (in relative terms) in Rivendell but she suspected she would not be allowed to stay indefinitely.

Arwen was very kind to her, making sure she was well looked after. She would make a point of getting Penny to sit with her in the evenings amongst the general company after meals, or else if she saw Penny when she was in the garden also, would call her over and talk. Even if Penny didn't understand, Arwen would point out flowers, or simply try and make her feel included in whatever conversation was going on around her. The hobbits used similar tactics, as did the Rivendell elves she was getting to know. Erestor and Lord Elrond would call her over to sit with them if in company, so she was getting to hear a lot of Sindarin and beginning to recognise individual words, though she did not know what they always meant.

If Boromir was among the company she would do her best to not look at him or respond to him at all. In fact she did everything she could to avoid him even to the point of turning and walking in the opposite direction if she saw him heading towards her on occasion. If Gandalf was around he was careful to steer her away from him or give her some excuse to leave and get away from him. If Gandalf wasn't around, though, it was not always so easy. Several times, now, she had found herself trapped in a corridor with him alone and he, taking his cue no doubt from the first time he had really tried to talk to her, would point out figures in paintings on the walls, explaining the scenes or stories they came from.

Many scenes she understood on sight, or she heard the names and could guess, and she was interested how many seemed to be related to Elrond himself. There was a portrait of Gil-Galad in his armour and his herald beside him; Earendil in his boat, the silmaril on his brow; Elwing in flight and the Nauglamir round her neck. There were views of Nargothrond, of Doriath or Gondolin. Boromir pointed them and others out to her. He clearly knew his history.

Even so she did her best to get away from him as fast as she could on such occasions, often muttering the name of some skill she was learning, or Mireth's or Eleniel's names, as if she had somewhere she needed to be. The problem was he was such a nice bloke. Really nice. Very affable, charming, well read and learned. He was as handsome as hell: tall, dark and strong. If it wasn't for the fact that this was Boromir - Boromir who tries to take the Ring and, more to the point, will be dead in three months – she would have really enjoyed getting to know him better, or as well as she could within the confines of no mutual language.

Already she felt waves of sadness and despair hit her when she let herself think of the fact that he would die and that she knew it, that there was nothing she could do to stop it.

She also had another problem on her hands. She couldn't put her finger on it exactly but she had noticed that Legolas seemed to be watching her quite frequently. She had, at first, thought she was imagining it then realised she couldn't be when she glanced in his direction three times one evening to find him staring at her each time. His gaze had been one of curiosity but hard, his jaw tight. She hadn't liked his look at all.

She remembered what had been said when she had first met Arwen properly and she started to be concerned that he had sensed something about her just as Arwen had. Elrond had told her not to worry about such a possibility, but she couldn't help thinking about it. For several days after that conversation she had found herself second-guessing every elf she spoke to which was horrible. She had caught herself even doing it with Mireth and Eleniel, which was unforgivable.

There was a knock on the Lord Elrond's door. It was late afternoon in early December, just after dusk but an hour or two before the evening meal.

"Come in."

A figure entered hesitantly. "Forgive me, my lord. I trust I am not disturbing you? Lord Erestor told me you were here."

Elrond looked up from his desk and the paper he was reading. "Not at all, Legolas. Please, do come in." He stood. "Would you care for some wine?"

"I thank you, my lord, that would be most agreeable."

Elrond gestured Legolas to sit in a chair on one side of the fireplace. There was no fire lit but the chairs there were more comfortable and it would be a more pleasant place to discuss whatever it was on the young prince's mind. He was clearly troubled. That was obvious from his eyes.

Elrond came over to him, holding two cups of wine, and handed one to Legolas before seating himself opposite him. "Now then, Legolas. Why don't you tell me what is on your mind? What did you want to see me about?"

Legolas did not answer immediately. He sipped his wine slowly, not looking directly at Elrond, as if trying to marshal his thoughts and considering how best to begin. At last, he lowered his cup, looked Elrond directly in the eye and said, "Who, exactly, _is_ Lady Pen-ii?"

There was a brief silence during which Elrond studied the young prince thoughtfully. "What exactly do you mean by your question, Legolas? I am not sure how best to answer you."

Legolas nodded. "I notice you answer my question with one of your own. Very well, my lord, I shall be frank. I am surprised that she is here as a guest and given free access to your realm. I admit I do not know her, but there is something about her that I sense, like nothing I have ever known. I know what her story is and yet..." He paused briefly and then looked Elrond straight in the eye as he continued, "And yet I do not believe it. Not for a moment."

Elrond said nothing. He sat, his face impassive, his eyes narrowed slightly as he sipped his wine and allowed Legolas to continue.

"She has not lost her memory as Mithrandir claims. I can feel she has not. I have met those who have had such experiences. There was one unfortunate from Dale who suffered a terrible blow to the head in the Battle of the Five Armies. The poor man could not remember his own name, let alone his own family or history. He recovered, but not for many months. I know how that feels and she does not have that. Or not for me, at least, and, as I say, I have had prior experience of it. I find it curious and disturbing that one as strange as she should be here among us at such a time, and with the presence of such a thing as we have here with us in Imladris at this moment. It cannot be coincidence. Forgive me, my lord, if I seem overbold. I am sure if I sense this from her, then you and Mithrandir cannot fail to do so also. I just felt I should bring the matter to your attention."

Elrond nodded and smiled thinly. "I thank you, Lord Legolas, for your conscientiousness in this regard. Though, I feel you are not being wholly honest."

Legolas made a gasp of protest but Elrond held up his hand to stop him as he continued, "What you want to know is, if I and Mithrandir sense what you sense, then why have we not done anything about it? In truth, you feel you deserve an explanation, perhaps?"

Legolas coloured a little but nodded. "Forgive me if I seem presumptuous, but these are serious and dangerous times, my lord, as you well know..."

"And you are a prince in your own realm and one used to being in full possession of the facts. After the details and knowledge you were party to in the Council you feel it strange to be kept in the dark in this matter. Very well, Legolas. I am not surprised, in truth. I imagined one or two might sense something more than her simply being foreign to us, though she is foreign to us, Legolas, but I do not think you could even begin to guess by how much."

Elrond stood, placing his cup on the mantelpiece as he did so. "I think, Legolas, you might better understand this from Lady Pen-ii herself. You would not believe me if I were to tell you without proof." Legolas's brow furrowed in incomprehension. "Please, wait here for a moment will you?" With that Elrond left his study.

He quickly found Erestor and explained the situation. Erestor shook his head. "I feared something like this might happen. Elbereth be praised it is at least someone as trustworthy and clear-headed as Legolas."

"Indeed," agreed Elrond. "I need you to find Mithrandir and Pen-ii. Bring them to my study as soon as you are able. I did not wish for any others to know of this, but Legolas deserves an explanation, even if he is one of those to go with Maura."

Erestor nodded and bustled off, having a pretty shrewd idea of where Mithrandir and Penny might be since he had just come from the large antechamber where a crowd were exchanging stories and both had been there.

As Elrond re-entered his study Legolas asked, "What is this about, Lord Elrond? I take it I am correct in my assessment of her?"

"In part, yes. She _is_ a stranger, foreign to our languages and customs. She does, as you suspected, indeed know where she comes from. The truth will shock and surprise you as it did me. You should know that not only Mithrandir knows the truth. There were six of us that questioned her: Erestor, Aragorn, Glorfindel and Halbarad being the other four. The twins and Arwen know also."

Legolas nodded. In part that so many knew and yet she was still given free reign among them all alleviated his fears greatly. Even just to know that Elrond, as he had suspected, knew had eased his heart.

He had been greatly troubled when he had heard Gloín's question and Mithrandir's answer a week or so ago. He had immediately known it was not true and yet could not think why Mithrandir would lie, nor why her identity should be hidden. That, combined with the utter strangeness he sensed from her, had perturbed him. The more he had studied her and focused his attention on her, the more strange and alien she had seemed to him. It had worried him greatly. At first he had tried to push it away from his mind, refusing to consider that Mithrandir or Elrond would allow someone who may be a threat to walk among them. It had then occurred to him that they may have considered it better to have a threat where they could keep an eye on it rather than working against them unseen. It was then he had resolved to speak to Lord Elrond about it. He had a right to know. He was a representative of the North, would be going on an important and dangerous quest. If there was a danger to the quest, himself, his father's realm or the Ring, he felt he should be told.

"I am glad you came to me with this, Legolas. Better you know the truth and all doubt is eased from your heart than you think we are holding back important information from you. When you discover what her story is you will, perhaps, understand better why I did not wish it to be generally known, and especially not to any of those who will accompany Maura."

"So it does concern the Ring!"

"Only indirectly. I will let her explain."

There was a knock on the door and Erestor entered with Mithrandir and Penny following him. As Erestor turned to go, Elrond bade him stay. "You may be able to help convince Legolas of the truth of all this. You might remember how difficult some of us were to convince at the time."

As Legolas raised an eyebrow at this, Gandalf smirked, "Yes, Elrond. Some were indeed very difficult to convince."

Elrond coughed and muttered something about not being entirely sure what Mithrandir was driving at. Then he turned to Penny, offering her a seat and some wine, before either Erestor or Gandalf could respond.

At last they were all seated and settled. It was Elrond who began. "Pen- ii, I appreciate this may be difficult for you, but I must ask you to explain where you come from and what your story is to Lord Legolas."

Penny wasn't sure she had understood Gandalf correctly at first. She looked at Elrond, who nodded, then at Legolas who was watching her quietly with that same intent, hard look she had caught him sending her way every now and then the last few days.

"Oh, shit."

Mithrandir raised an eyebrow and didn't translate.

She nearly spilled her wine as she let her head fall into her free hand with a groan. Then she looked at Elrond. "You said I had nothing to worry about. You said that most of the elves here would not sense anything about me. I presume he," she gestured at Legolas, "has in fact sussed out that I am not who you are all saying I am."

She sunk back into her chair, her elbow on the chair's arm and her brow in her hand. She was worried now. Really worried. She knew that she had nothing to fear in the sense that those who already knew would make sure she was treated well but the idea that everyone would somehow guess or that word would get out in some way terrified her. They would all think her some kind of freak. It would change how they dealt with her completely. Especially if it became know that she knew what lay ahead of them all. God, it just didn't bear thinking about.

She was toying with her wine cup, her breathing quickening slightly as all this ran through her head. There was silence from the four males in the room.

Legolas suddenly had a feeling that this was very big indeed and that she was very worried that he had even brought it up at all. He turned to Elrond, "What is this all about?"

Elrond sighed and then said gently, "Pen-ii? Please?"

She looked up at Legolas and he could see tears in her eyes. His brow furrowed even more.

"I am... I..." She sighed. "I do not know how I got here. I am from here, but not from this time. I.. Oh God, how do you explain this? There are two Ages or more between my time and this. All this, all of you, are known to me. I have read it all in a book. You are like myths. Like Gondolin or Valinor would seem to you, well that's how you are to me."

She waited as Gandalf translated her meaning, watching Legolas's reaction as he listened. He snorted, smiling, clearly thinking it a joke. Then, as he glanced at the faces of Erestor, Gandalf and Elrond he realised that they were deadly serious. He looked back at Penny. "You cannot be serious? This is a jest, a trick, surely? It is not possible. I refuse to believe it!"

Penny didn't need a translation. There was nothing she could say about Legolas that he would not think someone else had told her. She looked at Mithrandir, "Please explain to Lord Legolas that no-one here has told me anything of him or his family outside of that brief mention of King Thranduil when you, Bilba and Gloín were telling your story of Erebor the other day."

Gandalf translated this and added, "I can vouch for what she says, Legolas. You must believe her."

Penny looked at Legolas. "I have to confess that little is known of your history, Lord Legolas. I do not know if you have brothers or sisters. I do not know your mother's name or her fate. All we know of you is that you are one of the Eight chosen to go with Maura and the One Ring. I know what your fate will be but don't ask me because I won't tell you. You are Legolas, son of King Thranduil, son of Oropher. Oropher came from Doriath and fought at the Battle of the Last Alliance. He didn't wait for the signal from Gil-galad, but went ahead and charged. Your father brought home only one-third of the army to your realm from that battle. That is all I can tell you of your past. There is also no way I could know what you came here for, nor what you said in the Council, would you agree?"

Legolas nodded as Gandalf translated her question. He was not convinced. Anyone could have told her what she had just told him of his family.

"Very well. You came here to tell of Smeagol's escape."

Legolas gasped. He looked from Elrond to Gandalf who simply smiled sadly back at him.

"You know that no-one from the Council would have told her what was said there, Legolas. I know you do not need to ask us that," said Elrond as he saw the younger elf's astonishment.

Penny continued. "There was an attack. Yrch. Smeagol escaped but not before some of your people were killed. It was Aragorn who brought him to your father, at Mithrandir's insistence." Legolas nodded dumbly as Penny shrugged. "It is not much, and it may not convince you. You might think I learnt this from people telling me, but I didn't I promise you. I read it. I read it in a book. Erestor, Mithrandir and Elrond can tell you."

And they did: all three relating, in brief, what had happened at the questioning and how she had shown knowledge she could not have possibly known. Legolas's eyes were wide in astonishment, alternately staring at whoever was speaking and then back at Penny.

At last silence fell and Legolas struggled to take in what he had been told. When he finally spoke his voice was quiet. "I see now, Lord Elrond, why you did not want this known and especially not to those who will travel with Maura given the fate of that journey is known and the outcome of the impending war." He considered Penny thoughtfully for a moment. Then, "You must forgive me, Lady Pen-ii. I think I may have been a little cold towards you till now."

She shook her head. "No, but I had noticed you watching me. I guessed that something was up."

"It must be difficult for you to have such knowledge, my lady. Can I ask, is this part of the reason for your behaviour with Lord Boromir? I only ask because he has noticed and interpreted it otherwise."

"What do you mean?"

Lord Elrond and Erestor were also looking confused. Only Gandalf knew of Penny's discomfort with Boromir and not even he knew the reason why. As Gandalf translated Penny's question he added, "Yes, Legolas, what _do_ you mean?"

"Well, I have noticed Lady Pen-ii trying to avoid him. So has he, in fact. He mentioned it to me, jokingly, the other evening. He had tried to say something to you, Lady Pen-ii, in the Hall of Fire and, well, you muttered something and very deliberately crossed the room to talk to Lady Mireth. You..." Legolas cleared his throat. "You blushed a little, if truth be told. I think that he is under the impression... well... that, er.." Legolas trailed off.

As Gandalf translated what Legolas had said, Penny looked at the blond elf and caught a look in his eye: partial amusement and partial embarrassment.

Oh my God.

No. No, no. Oh, bloody hell. No bloody way, this was NOT happening. Someone tell her this was not bloody happening. She turned in horror to look at the other three, now smirking slightly, Elrond with one eyebrow raised. Only Mithrandir looked at all serious but there was a questioning look even in his eye as he returned her gaze. They had all suddenly realised what Legolas was driving at as well.

Boromir thought she fancied him.

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Author's Note: My sincere thanks go to Hellga for her help with Sindarin names. :)

Penny is learning to sit sideways on a horse because, as I can best discover (thank you NL & French Pony), that is how women rode even before the invention of the side-saddle. They would sit sideways behind the man or else sideways by themselves (but go no faster than a walk in that case). Riding hard and fast was clearly a male domain. Added to which is the issue of the skirts – which though potentially voluminous enough to cover everything could ride up. However: in elvish society men and women did not learn different skills according to sex as such (see Morgoth's Ring – vol 12 of History of Middle Earth) unlike humans. That would, one presumes, mean female elves could and would ride astride their animals if they needed to. JRRT, in the same essay, says that, while male elves fought in battle, if necessary the females would fight as well and would be as skilled at it as the men. It is not inconceivable therefore that Penny will be taught to ride sitting astride a horse just in case she ever needs to move an animal fast. This is a war situation, don't forget, so any eventuality is possible. Being able to ride a horse at a gallop, even if it does mean showing your knees, might save her life if Rivendell is attacked. So she will learn that as well later on. As ever this is poetic licence based on the best research I have been able to do on this matter.


	20. Open Mouth, Change Feet

Thank you for the reviews, everyone, as ever. And I know I've been a cow to Penny in this chapter. evil smirk I just couldn't resist it though... Enjoy!

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**Chapter 20** - _"Open Mouth, Change Feet"_

Penny was speechless. Dumbfounded. Horrified. She was fairly sure a large part of her brain had just imploded at the idea that Boromir thought she had the hots for him. The rest was in danger of atrophying and crawling into a corner to die slowly. This was NOT good. This was bloody insane.

'Oh, great', she thought, 'We're back to insanity again. Fantastic.'

In that moment, of course, she realised her mistake. She should have treated them all the same: either avoided them all or given Boromir the same attention she gave the others. It's just she felt so uncomfortable round him. She had tried. She really had. Clearly, though, she had failed miserably.

Her mind was racing. There was no likelihood of him responding, was there? She hoped to God not. No, of course it was not likely. She was no whore and she was a guest of Elrond. No way, José, would he try anything even if he wanted to and she doubted he would. She sincerely _hoped_ he would not. Added to which he was the eldest son of the Steward of Gondor, the nearest thing to a King till Aragorn would come along, so he was way out of her league.

What the bloody hell was she going to do now?

It was clear from the expressions on the faces round her that they thought the same as Boromir. She could not possibly tell them the real reason for her discomfort with him even though she suspected Gandalf might have guessed part of it. Her heart sank as she realised she only had one option open to her.

She nodded slowly at Legolas. Her stomach twisted into knots as she forced herself to speak.

"I thought I'd been more discrete. I feel really embarrassed knowing that he's guessed."

Grins.

Penny closed her eyes, could feel her cheeks burning, and wished to God that the ground would swallow her up then and there. Boromir thinking it was bad enough. Others knowing and thinking the same thing was going to be even worse.

"Please don't tell anyone. Please. I beg you. I'd be mortified."

Even wider grins.

"Have no fear, Pen-ii. Your secret is safe enough. But you must be more careful in future. I do not wish to seem rude, but Boromir is not... well... he does not know you, you are not from a noble family that he knows of. It would be out of the question." Elrond was being as gentle and kind as he could be.

Penny nodded, feeling too sick in her stomach to fake an adequate response. She had noticed Gandalf had raised an eyebrow at her. He suspected she was lying. Thankfully he hadn't said anything about it. He would, no doubt, understand why she had decided to accept the deception being offered to her. She had no alternative.

'Nightmare scenario number four hundred and thirty-seven,' she thought to herself. 'Having to pretend you fancy someone who you know will be dead in three months and, even worse, _knowing_ that he thinks you fancy him.' She really _was_ going to avoid him now.

As soon as she could she murmured an apology and fled Elrond's study. She could hear the murmured talking even as she left the room. Wetting themselves, no doubt. She cringed with embarrassment.

There was a little while yet till dinner so she hurried to her room. She had some writing practice to finish for Erestor as it was. As she turned a corner she saw him: Boromir in conversation with one of the dwarves and two Rivendell elves at the bottom of the stairs that led to her room. She froze.

Okay, plan B: she would head to the gardens.

She turned to go in the opposite direction but not before she caught Boromir look up, see her and smile kindly at her. His look had been a mixture of kindly pity and vague amusement. Penny groaned as she walked away as fast as she could.

There had indeed been soft laughter once she had left the room but not cruel. She was young and clearly a little naive. She was certainly unused to how things were done here in that regard. It was Gandalf who was explaining.

"I do not know the full story of how things are conducted where she comes from, but I get the impression it is very different from here."

The elves looked at him. "Well, she is married is she not?"

It was Erestor who asked. Elves can sense these things.

Gandalf looked at them. "No," he said quietly. "She considers marriage something she is not ready for. The idea of that, even children, fills her with alarm. She considers it both amusing and strange that I think at her age should already be married. She is twenty-three. Most humans, as you well know, are married by her age. Or the females certainly are, but even many males."

The elves nodded, murmuring their agreement quietly. Well then, what they sensed from her was not 'marriage' then but she was not unknown to a man. They wondered at this.

"Has she ever been married?" Elrond asked very quietly.

There was a brief pause before Gandalf said, "I do not believe she has, no."

There was a shocked silence at the implications of this.

Gandalf continued, "I do not have anything specific from what she has said to me, and it is hardly a subject I can broach with her, but I sense that indulging in such things before marriage is not unusual where she comes from."

The three elves exchanged appalled looks.

"You can't be serious, Mithrandir," Legolas was saying. "It's unthinkable. Immoral. Disgusting! Added to which humans cannot control their conception of children as we elves can, how would such a thing be possible?"

Gandalf shrugged. "I may be wrong, I do not know. She is from a time very different and very distant from our own. Things change. Customs change. It may be that has changed also."

"Perhaps, then, she thought Boromir and she...?"

Gandalf cut off Erestor before he could finish. "No. I do not think so. Of that much I am certain." The others looked at him but he would say no more.

Legolas, draining his cup, stood. "Well, I thank you for your frankness, Lord Elrond. I understand completely, though I must confess I am a little shocked and bewildered by what I have learnt. If you will forgive me I think I need a little air. Time to reflect on this and allow myself to grow accustomed to this most unexpected news."

"But of course, Lord Legolas. I know I do not need to press upon you the importance that this must be divulged to no one and in particular those who are to travel with you and Maura. I think it may be best to not even talk of it with those who already know of it. The less discussion and speculation on what she may or may not know the better, I feel."

Legolas nodded, "But of course, Lord Elrond. I understand completely and wholeheartedly agree. You have my word no one shall learn of this from me." So saying he bowed to them and left.

Erestor left soon afterwards but Gandalf did not do so. He turned to Elrond who had returned to his wine and his seat beside the fire. "I do not think she told us the truth just now. She knows something about Boromir, though what I do not know. She has not told me, but I sensed it from her and I offered to try and keep her away from him as best I could. She thanked me and seemed relieved for my offer. Something else is the reason behind her behaviour with him. I think I can guess what it might be, but I think it is better we do not know. It is also probably best Boromir continues to think it is because she finds him attractive."

Elrond nodded. "But of course, Mithrandir. What do you think it may be she knows?"

"It is best not to speculate. It may not be anything 'bad' as such. It may be knowledge of his death. It may be many things. Whatever it is it is enough that she does not wish to get to know him too well while he is here. We should respect her wishes and not push her as to the reasons why. We may well regret it if we were to discover the truth. It may be that she will tell you more once we have left Rivendell with the Ring. I do not know."

They both fell quiet then, lost in their own thoughts.

So for the following month till the Fellowship left she had to put up with Boromir. He was very gentlemanly about it all. She had to give credit where credit was due: he behaved impeccably with her. He went out of his way to not make her feel ill at ease, though she noticed there were no more solo painting admiration trips in the corridors. For that, at least, she was _very_ grateful. If they met while they were alone he was pleasant and courteous but left as politely and as quickly as he could. Again, in some senses it couldn't have been better.

The only bad thing from all this was that his behaviour raised him even higher in her estimation of him. It made her feel even more keenly how much of a blow and loss his death would be. As the time for the Fellowship leaving drew nearer she would lie awake at night thinking of what was to come and would wet her pillow with her tears.

For now, though, it was early December and, though, it was getting colder and there was little to do in the garden these days, there was still work she could help with. Her sewing was improving, though it needed a lot of work still. She had managed to make a small wicker basket for herself and was now trying to make a lid that would fit it. She would keep larger sewing projects in it. She had nearly managed a vase on the potter's wheel... before it had collapsed on her, but she was definitely improving.

In her riding she had progressed to a trot and was struggling to master the 'rise and fall' that the rider needed to go with it: so you lift yourself out of the saddle in time to the horse's movement so stopping yourself from just slamming into the saddle uncontrollably. It was very difficult to do sideways on, or so Penny found, and she wished she could sit astride the animal like Halbarad had done.

Her Sindarin was improving, if very slowly. She now had quite a bit of vocabulary, had identified a negative and had several basic questions and phrases both from what she had picked up and guessed the meaning of as well as that which Erestor had taught her. She was learning verbs, though how to conjugate them would be her next big struggle with Erestor. He started with those she knew already such as 'sewing', 'gardening', 'riding', 'writing', 'reading', or 'eating'. Soon she had the endings for each person and could say 'I ride' or 'he rides'.

It was a slow process though and there was a lot to take in. She was finding she was forgetting words she knew previously and Erestor now started giving her spelling tests. He had also given her a book. Or rather, a bundle of pages bound together with raffia. He made it clear this was for her to collect the words she was using and to write a vocabulary list of her own language. Her lesson was extended to an hour each morning and she now was trying to teach Erestor English. She wasn't terribly good at it.

"Pen-ii, I have no idea how your language works. Every time you tell me a letter is pronounced a certain way you then write down something that is pronounced completely differently. It has no rhyme or reason to it. How can that," he pointed to 'bow' which she had written on the board, "be pronounced _bau_ as well as _bou_."

Penny couldn't help but giggle at his pronunciation. "'Bow' and 'bow', Erestor."

He repeated them dutifully but still looked utterly baffled by it all. Penny sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "What do you want me to say, Erestor? It's a mad language! Perhaps Mithrandir should be here with us." She said in Sindarin, "Mithrandir. Here. Us. Lesson."

Erestor nodded. He had guessed her meaning as it was. "Perhaps, Pen-ii, perhaps. I do not see that he will find it any less confusing than I, though. Anyway, that is enough for today. I shall study this further and see if I can find any sense of it. The 'e' at the end of a word I can understand well enough, but as for the rest...! Elbereth, it is the most bizarre language I think I have ever come across."

She was learning more about social mores all the time, as well. While most skills were not delineated according to sex there were still boundaries. The dress of elvish women was no more revealing or sensual than the ladies or hobbit-females she'd seen in Bree. Contact was kept polite and friendly but there was little physical contact unless between husband and wife, betrothed or siblings and families. The male elves were clearly unaware, or pretended to be, of the effect they could have on female humans. Penny was slowly getting used to it, but still had to catch her breath if she was surrounded by too many at once.

She had had an unfortunate incident the day after Legolas had discovered her story. Mireth wasn't about and Penny had a dress and two undershifts to wash. She decided to take herself off to the river without hunting about to see if Mireth wanted to come with her. So far they had fallen into a pattern of going once a week together, but since she had washing that needed doing and she had a few hours spare, Penny thought 'why not' and headed off.

Big mistake.

The path that led to the washing stoop on the river, wound through trees, so the river was near enough completely screened till you were nearly at the stoop itself. It meant that when Penny arrived she was left in little doubt as to the foolishness of her decision. She discovered that there were in fact male and female clothes washing days. Today was a male washing day.

They were very good about it. They had all heard her coming. It had to be her because no elf or hobbit would have made that much noise and, with only two humans currently staying in Rivendell, Boromir would not have run away immediately on seeing them. In fact Boromir would possibly even now be on his way with washing of his own. So it could only have been Pen-ii. They carried on, not even looking up. Only once they heard her running as fast as she could in the opposite direction did several look up and exchange grins.

Bloody hell! THAT was going to be a scene burned into her memory for life! Half a dozen male elves, or more, tunic-less and with their leggings rolled up to the knees bashing the crap out of their washing. Well, she certainly knew for a fact, now, how well toned and muscular they were. Bare chested, sweaty male elves. Bare-chested, sweaty, WET male elves. Penny stumbled as she ran just at the thought. She was fairly sure there had been at least one golden-haired elf there. Please God let it not have been Legolas. It was bad enough that she had recognised Lindir in amongst them all and she wasn't sure but another one might have been Erestor. She could feel her cheeks burning. Oh, shit. Oh, shit! How did she keep doing this to herself? It was going to get to the point that she would be too embarrassed to come out of her room. Ever!

She ran all the way to her chambers and stayed there for the rest of the afternoon. From her balcony she could see a little of the garden and the beginning of the path that led to the gates and so down to the river. She could hear laughing and talking of males voices after an hour or so and stood, to one side of her window, to see. Yup, it was some of the washers, now fully dressed, and carrying wet clothes in baskets. Lindir was not there but Erestor was in conversation with a Mirkwood elf (not Legolas she was relieved to note, though he might have been there as well and she had just not see him). She groaned. Well _that_ was going to be an interesting Sindarin lesson tomorrow. She made a mental note to not stay in the company after dinner but just come back to her room and get an early night.

She busied herself with some sewing, sitting at her window. After a little while, though, there was a faint knock at her door. She told whoever it was to come in (having finally learnt the phrase that Erestor said to her nearly every day) and Mireth and Eleniel entered, both in a fit of giggles. Penny smiled, wondering what on earth had happened that was so hilarious.

As the two elleths, near enough talking at once and finishing each other's sentences, told her, though, her heart sank. Her name, 'river', 'washing' and 'ellyn' made it clear enough what was so funny.

Penny groaned out loud and let her head fall to her hands."I don't believe this! How did you know?" She tried her Sindarin, "Who he speak you two?"

"Lindir told us, but they all heard you and one or two saw you too, I think. Do you realise Lord Erestor was there as well? Oh, Pen-ii, it's too funny! What WERE you thinking? I am sure I tried to explain to you there were separate washing days for men and women but you clearly didn't understand me. I am sorry Pen-ii. I feel like this is my fault. Even so.." Mireth exchanged a grin with Eleniel and the two collapsed into another fit of hysterics, "I would have given anything to see their faces. And yours! Oh Pen-ii, I'm sorry. I can't help it." She had thrown her arms about Penny who they could see what mortified by what had happened.

Eleniel was grinning at her, holding her hand. "Pen-ii, do not worry. They are not upset. It is just funny. They all think so. You must not feel embarrassed. It was an honest mistake. Easily done, and not the first time by a guest I am sure. Everyone will be very polite and not mention it." Her face split into an even wider grin as she added, "Still I can think of at least one elf I would not mind seeing in just his leggings."

Mireth gasped, "Eleniel!" Then she roared with laughter.

Penny hadn't understood but, having heard 'leggings' and 'seeing' with an 'I' ending in there somewhere she could guess. She shook her head, pink with embarrassment, but couldn't help a smile. "Not I look," she confessed in her fractured elvish. Which she had not. She had seen, but she had not dared stare or look properly. She had seen, realised and fled as fast as she could. She was now explaining this in fractured Sindarin and hand gestures to the two elleths.

That just made Mireth and Eleniel laugh even louder.

Penny was now worried this would have spread round the entirety of Rivendell. She tried asking Mireth and Eleniel but she couldn't make herself understood. In fact, she was about to find out just how gossipy elves can be. Something like this would have been known round the entirety of Imladris within about ten minutes of the first ellon coming back from the river.

She was dreading heading down for dinner.

When the bell rang and the two elleths beckoned her to get to her feet and come with them she shook her head. "No. Everyone will know, I am sure of it. I can't bear it." They just grinned and, grabbing hold of her hands, pulled her to her feet.

"Don't worry, Pen-ii," said Eleniel. "We are with you. They wouldn't dare say anything with us around. We'll make sure nothing happens."

There was no whispering. No giggling. Not even nudges or smirks. But she knew they all knew and by 'they' she meant 'absolutely everyone including the hounds'. As soon as the three had entered the dining hall and made their way to a table and sat down she had realised. Something in Gandalf's greeting to her: his smile was a little broader than usual, his eyes sparkling with amusement. Boromir too was near grinning. She found herself sitting not too distant from Lindir who flashed a smile at her, a far more friendly one than normal. As he did so she desperately tried to get rid of the image of his half naked torso out of her head. She wouldn't think about it. She would NOT think about it. She was in serious danger of 'beauty overload' just at the idea.

She was grateful no one said anything or made anything out of it. It was utterly mortifying to know everyone knew, though. From now on she would not go near that bloody river unless she had Mireth or Eleniel with her. She had learned her lesson the hard way.

After dinner she would not be persuaded to stay with the company either in one of the antechambers or the Hall of Fire. As she was gently saying 'no' to Mireth and Eleniel in the corridor outside the dining hall, Arwen approached her. "Pen-ii. I heard about what happened today at the river. It must have been very embarrassing for you. Rest assured no one blames you or laughs at your expense. We have all done embarrassing things by mistake at times."

Penny didn't understand her but could sense the sympathy and kindness in her tone. She had understood 'river' so knew what it was in relation to. "Le hannon, hiril nin," she murmured.

Gandalf approached. "Pen-ii. You surpassed yourself today, I understand. Lords Elrond and Erestor are most amused."

Penny flushed scarlet.

Gandalf laughed, "Oh, do not be embarrassed, Pen-ii. You were not to know. No harm done. None at all."

"No indeed," agreed Arwen. Gandalf translated for her as she continued, "You must not worry about it in the least, Pen-ii. And if Lindir tries to make fun of you, remind him of the time he got roaring drunk one night, went swimming in the river and I and my ladies-in-waiting found him sleeping and completely naked on the river bank the next morning."

Penny spluttered, her eyes wide. "I'm sorry... What!" She started laughing.

Arwen winked with a grin and wandered off to the Hall of Fire as she said, "As I say, Pen-ii, we have all done our fair share of ridiculous or amusing things. Do not feel ashamed for an honest mistake."

Gandalf offered Penny his arm. "Will you join me, Lady Pen-ii?"

Penny hesitated, considering. Oh, what the hell! If Lindir could be found starkers on a riverbank by Elrond's daughter and live to tell the tale, she could face this down. She took his arm and headed off with him to listen to the songs already sailing down the corridor towards them.

The following morning Erestor merely raised his eyebrow at her slightly when she entered his study for her lesson, but otherwise he didn't mention it. He did not refer to it once. Penny did notice, though, that if he caught her eye his smile was a little cheekier than she had ever seen it before. Each time it happened she caught herself blushing and looking down. Once she could have sworn she heard him chuckle at her reaction, but when she looked up at him his face was impassive.

She wondered if it was a coincidence that today's lesson was on days of the week? 'Highly unlikely', she thought.

After her Sindarin lesson, though, she had to face Lindir: the same Lindir who had smirked at her through most of yesterday's evening meal, had told both Mireth and Eleniel, and who Arwen had suspected may try and tease her about it. She was not looking forward to being alone with him given those facts.

Sure enough, as she approached the stables she could see him already standing beside the mare waiting for her with a silly grin plastered all over his face. She gritted her teeth and muttered under her breath, "One comment. Just one bloody comment, my boy, and I'll... I'll..." She trailed off, realising she did not know the Sindarin for 'drunk' or 'naked' but she was pretty sure she could get the message across despite that if she needed to. Just let him try it. Bring it on!

Scowling she met his gaze, his eyes glinting with amusement, as she mounted the animal and started it moving. Lindir, quickly leaping onto his stallion to follow her, came alongside her, throwing glances at her every now and then and still grinning his head off.

As they neared the paddock, Penny stopped her horse and turned to him. "What? What is it, Lindir? I realise I made a complete arse of myself yesterday, but it was an honest mistake, alright? It wasn't my fault and everyone else has had the common decency to not mention it, make light of it, or else reassure me that it's fine. So what the bloody hell are you grinning at?"

Lindir looked a little surprised at her tone, grinned once more and then burst out laughing. He held up his hands as if in apology and did a fair attempt at looking suitably chastened. He failed miserably given he was still giggling. Penny scowled at him and moved her horse forward once more and into the paddock.

She heard a voice behind her. She did not know exactly what he had said, but it was something about 'riding', 'horses', 'tomorrow' and 'river'. She was fairly sure he was suggesting they go riding there tomorrow. Given she knew perfectly well now that it would another male washing day, she knew he was just ripping the piss at her expense.

She decided to ignore him.

Lindir just grinned. He was going to enjoy today's lesson enormously. "You are quite sure you do not want to ride past the river tomorrow? I am pretty sure Erestor might be there again. Who knows, I think I have a pair of leggings that need washing as well. I could get as many of us as possible there, if you like, all stripped to the waist."

She couldn't understand a lot of it but it was fairly obvious he was baiting her. She threw a glance over her shoulder at him and said pleasantly, "I'd be careful if I were you, Lindir. I know something about you."

He was surprised to see, not a scowl, but a smirk. There was a mischievous glint in her eye as well. What was she up to? What had she just said?

She was speaking Sindarin now, "No you talk Pen-ii 'river' and 'male elves'. I listen story. Your story."

Lindir raised an eyebrow at her as he brought his horse alongside hers. Her tone had been firm, yet with a hint of laughter. What did she mean by 'his story'? Was she playing along in return? If so this would be no fun at all.

"You ran away too quickly yesterday. You cannot have seen much. I think you need a second look. Let's ride by the river tomorrow, hmm, Pen-ii? What do you think?"

"Lindir, Lady Arwen spoke to me, you know."

Lindir froze as he heard Penny mention Lady Arwen's name. He turned to her, feeling a little worried now.

"Arwen she talk me. You and river. Wine. Big wine. Arwen she look. No your clothes, Lindir. Lindir no you talk Pen-ii 'river' and 'male elves'. You understand?" This last she had picked up with her lessons with Erestor.

Penny watched as Lindir's eyes grew wide with astonishment. A flush immediately came to his cheeks and slowly spread to his entire face and even to his ears. She felt cruel, but... well... she HAD been told to do this by Arwen herself if he said anything and he had said something. Several times. It was his own fault.

He was not looking at her now but was clearing his throat and then talking matter-of-factly as if trying to regain some authority on the situation. "Umm, yes, well Pen-ii. I think we can keep things simple today. Walk. In a circle, please."

He waved his arm in a vague manner ahead of him, still not looking at her in the eye and Penny, smirking her head off, moved the horse forward and then started walking in a large circle round the edge of the paddock as usual.

She didn't get another peep out of him for the rest of the lesson.

* * *

Author's Note: In HoME (Morgoth's Ring) it says that elves can sense if someone is married or not. Now it doesn't specify if this is just with other elves or if they can sense it with other races as well. Given elvish sensibilities, and the fact that we humans can make fairly accurate guesses based on someone's demeanour as to whether they are a virgin or not, I do not think it too much of a stretch to say that elves can sense such things about humans pretty accurately. In Middle Earth, of course, sex would only come with marriage. Hence their shock at the idea that she is not a virgin and yet never been married.

_Ellyn_ - male elves (plural of 'ellon')


	21. The Prodigal Son

**Chapter 21** - _"The Prodigal Son"_

It couldn't be ignored for any longer. In fact this was now officially designated a 'Non-Ignorable Situation'. It was revolting and something needed to be done.

Penny was standing in her bedchamber, one arm wrapped round the top of her head, as she inspected her underarms. She had been in Middle Earth nearly six weeks. The hair situation was beyond serious.

It was bath night tonight (that, like clothes washing, was done once a week since it was such a palaver to organise) and she was going to have to broach this one with Mireth, Eleniel or Lady Arwen – whichever of them she ran into first this morning. She was not looking forward to using a cutthroat razor on her armpits, and she suspected she would be covered with cuts afterwards (and no tissue paper to deal with it), but she could not put up with this any longer. Apart from anything else it was making her stink. She had even taken to using the lavender oil under her arms in desperation.

No, there was nothing else for it. She nodded in a determined fashion, dabbed on some lavender oil on her freshly washed armpits, got dressed and strode down to breakfast.

Mireth and Eleniel disappeared straight after eating before Penny could speak to them. She knew Erestor would be waiting for her but she was determined to speak to Arwen first. She waited at her seat, even though she had finished eating and Maura had finished testing her Sindarin, till she saw Arwen get up and go to leave the hall.

Penny stood and rushed after her, "Arwen? Hiril nin? Goheno nin, I need to speak to you."

Arwen turned and smiled, "Pen-ii! Good morning. You wish to say something to me, my dear? Come, walk with me a little, then. I am on my way to my chambers."

So Penny fell in step with Elrond's daughter as they walked down the corridors and up stairs. As they did so Penny tried to explain what she needed. She used her limited Sindarin first of all. "Me. Bath. Washing. Today."

Arwen smiled, nodded and wondered what on earth Pen-ii was about to ask of her. She knew it could not be her monthly bleeding had returned once more: it was too soon, and besides Mireth and Eleniel had dealt with that situation admirably.

"Go on, Pen-ii. Is there something you need, perhaps?"

Penny checked the corridor to see that no one was near them. She then pointed to her armpit and made shaving motions. Her brows were furrowed as she looked to see if Arwen, standing watching her curiously, had understood her. It was immediately apparent she had not.

"Okay, let's try this a different way. Ummm. Adan. Edain." As she said this Penny made 'shaving' motions on her face. Arwen nodded. "Me," she pointed at herself, made the shaving motions again and then pointed to her underarms.

There was a gasped 'Oh' from Arwen as the penny dropped. She grinned, nodding, and Penny beamed in relief.

"So you understand me? Thank God! Lady Arwen, I need a razor." She switched to Sindarin once more as she did the shaving motion again and said, "No there is. My bedchamber. No there is."

Arwen understood completely. She was surprised and pleased to hear Penny indulged in such a practice. It showed a level of cleanliness and attention to grooming nearly unheard of in humans. Elves would indulge in such a practice if they needed to, but you had to be very old indeed to need to do so. Arwen knew of not a single elf – expect possibly Cirdan – who was old enough.

"I will see what I can do, Pen-ii. We elves do not shave, but I am sure there might be one somewhere here. Indeed there must be for our male human guests when we have them. Otherwise a sharp knife might serve just as well. My chambers, after lunch, Pen-ii."

Penny nodded, having understood that last part.

So after lunch Penny made her way to Arwen's chambers, which, while she knew where they were, she had never been inside before. Penny could not help but gasp as she entered them. They were stunning. The walls were painted and the furniture was exquisite. There were two large balconies in the first room, which was much like a sitting room and antechamber and off which was a bedroom as well as another smaller room which Penny could see, through the open door, was a closet and dressing room.

Arwen disappeared into the bedroom for a moment and then returned with a small leather case. She opened it and showed Penny what was inside. A cutthroat razor, the handle made of silver and inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

"For you, Pen-ii. A gift."

Penny understood 'gift'. It was a word she had learnt when Mireth had given her the sewing kit and when the carpenter had given her the box. When Erestor had given her the book to write in and her own quill with silver nib he had used the word also.

Penny shook her head, "I can't, it's beautiful. Bain, hiril nin. Le hannon, but no you can't give me this."

Arwen shook her head in return, "Please take it, Pen-ii. We have several here kept for guests' use and I am happy to be able to provide you with something you need and will use regularly. It is yours. I will not allow you to refuse me." She smiled and held it towards Penny insistently.

Penny realised she wasn't going to win this one. "Le hannon, hiril nin. Really I mean it. Bain. Le hannon." She took it.

As she examined it, without opening the blade, Arwen could see and sense she was a little nervous. "What is it, Pen-ii?"

Penny, understanding her question looked at her. "I have never used one like this before. Oh... I don't know how to explain it." She smiled. "Don't worry. It's nothing. I'm sure I'll be fine."

'Yeah, if I don't slice an artery or something,' she thought.

Arwen smiled thoughtfully and nodded, realising Penny was trying to convince her everything was alright. Penny thanked Arwen for the razor once more and then went to her own room to put it away before heading off to do some weaving and basketry.

That night she sat in the bath with the leather pouch on the floor beside her. She kept picking it up, opening it, closing it, and putting it back on the floor again. After picking it up for the third time she muttered, "Oh this is ridiculous!" and took the razor from the pouch.

She held it in her hands, nervously. She gently took hold of the blade and opened it out. The blade was... well 'razor sharp' funnily enough. It glinted menacingly in the candle and lamp light. Penny suddenly wished she wasn't doing this in the gloom but in broad daylight. Too late now.

She placed the open razor on the floor, soaped and lathered one armpit then picked up the razor once more.

Her hand was shaking.

She breathed out, slowly, trying to calm herself. She was not quite sure why she was so frightened. Then her brain reminded her there was a reason why the 'safety razor' was so-called. Even so, men had used these things for hundreds of years happily enough before safety razors were invented. If they could do it so could she. She steadied her resolve. She tried to stretch her arm up as high and as far back as possible to make it easier. She slowly drew her shaking hand towards her armpit. She hesitated, took a deep breath, and then gently scraped.

OW! Dammit that stung! Ow! Shit! Damn!

She looked. Only part of the hair removed and a small nick that was stinging like buggery. She needed to do it again. At least she hadn't complete sliced her arm apart. Her hand shook much less the second time, though she still felt nervous.

Once done she lay back in the bath, letting the warm water sooth her stinging skin. She wouldn't even begin to attempt her legs. Not today. Another day when she felt braver. Perhaps stay hairy for a month or two till she'd got the hang of using this thing on her armpits first. Anyway, hairy legs did not make you smell at least so it was not as urgent as this situation had been. Besides, she was wearing long skirts. No one would know. Not like she was trying to pull. Not like she even wanted to pull anyone. No matter what Boromir may think.

Oh, shit. She'd managed to forget about that briefly. She groaned.

When she got out of the bath she realised she had a problem. She had cuts under both arms and nothing to stop the bleeding. She did not even know what would be used in such circumstances here anyway. Certainly not sticking plasters and she could hardly bandage her armpits on the strength of five tiny (if profusely bleeding) nicks. She had to improvise. It was nearly supper time and she did not have much time. In the end she got out two of her 'period cloths' as she called them, lay them over her armpits as she lay back on the bed with her arms stretched out above her. She waited.

Realising what she must look like she muttered, "This is bloody ridiculous." She shivered. She needed to dress.

Clamping each arm firmly to her sides with the cloths wedged in her armpits she pottered round to the other side of the room to decide which dress she was going to wear. She now had five since the two that had been made especially for her were finished. They were both of heavier material than the others for which she was grateful now winter was truly setting in, but it meant they were buggers to wash being that much heavier when wet, of course. Her strength was building though. All the hand washing, the gardening, the lugging about of water and generally being active was doing her the world of good. She could tell because the water pump outside the latrine was getting easier to use. She giggled remembering Halbarad's pitying expression and amusement the first time she had struggled with it.

Halbarad. She wondered if he would come back any time soon?

As it was at the end of the first week of December the scouts began to return. Over the coming week Penny began to notice the odd elf or human she did not recognise suddenly sitting amongst them at a meal or wandering past her in a corridor. The men were dressed just as Halbarad had been. Both the elves and men were dishevelled, their clothes stained with travel. The elves managed to look less dishevelled than the men, though, smelt a lot better and had well combed hair, but you could still tell they had been on the road for a bit. Penny giggled as a thought flashed through her head: 'It seems elves are human after all.' The men did not stay. Often she saw them at one meal, perhaps two, and then they disappeared once again.

She did not know if Halbarad would come back or send his information with someone else. She tried not to think about him. She definitely did NOT miss him. Nope. Definitely not. No, siree. Not on your nelly did she. She had only known him for nearly a fortnight for goodness sake, so why would she miss him?

One afternoon before dinner she found herself with Gandalf and Legolas as they walked in the garden, enjoying the early stars already visible in the sky. They discovered Erestor and Arwen sitting on a bench in a clearing and the three joined them. It was a rare opportunity for Penny to be surrounding by those who knew her situation and yet be under no pressure to discuss it. Even so the conversation invariably turned to it.

"I understand now how you knew of Smaug and the Battle of the Five Armies, Lady Pen-ii. Your stories did not tell you I was there, I take it." Legolas seemed intrigued.

"No, I'm afraid not, hir nin. There is no mention of you at all in... in the book that relates of it." She had nearly said 'Bilba's story' and had only just caught herself in time. Gandalf knowing was one thing, but it was probably better not known for the time being, if at all, by others. Gandalf had sensed it since he flashed her a warning look. The others caught his look but said nothing.

"What we know of you is from the Council of Elrond onwards, really. I only know a little of your father and grandfather. If it wouldn't bore you terribly, I'd like to know more. In fact," she turned to the others, "That goes for all of you, really. Erestor, I know nothing of you, really, other than that you are Lord Elrond's Chief Advisor, and you know, Mithrandir, that there are many things I'd like to know about though much of what I'd want to know you probably wouldn't want to talk about at the moment."

They looked at her quizzically. "Such as what, Pen-ii?" Gandalf asked her.

"Dol Guldur, for example. How you knew it was Sauron. I suspect you may never wish to speak of the time you went there, but we have only the barest details of it: what happened between you and Thorin's father and nothing else." She could see Gandalf's face was dark. "As I say, I realise you may never want to talk about such things. It is why I have not asked directly before now." Gandalf nodded and briefly explained to the others what she had said.

Penny turned to Erestor, "I know Glorfindel fought against the Witchking here in Eriador, but I presume you were there also. Did you see the fall of Arnor? That is another thing we have little information about. We know little of the Second and Third Ages."

Erestor nodded, his face serious. "I was there, Pen-ii, but with Nazgûl newly abroad I hope you will forgive me if I say I cannot speak of such things at this time. Perhaps, if Eru permits, after the war."

Penny said nothing but nodded. "I understand," she then said in Sindarin. They smiled at hearing her use their language, but they noted she had turned her face away from them so they could not read any reaction from her concerning Erestor's hope that he and she might be around after the War to talk of such things and that there would not be darkness and despair at such a time.

Penny recovered herself. "Tell me about your father's halls, Lord Legolas, if it wouldn't make you too homesick to think about it. I know beech trees are a favourite amongst your people. Can I ask you about your mother? Do you have brothers or sisters? If so are you the youngest, the eldest, somewhere in the middle?"

Legolas was laughing as Gandalf translated. "You wish to know my life history! And why, Lady Pen-ii, am I so significant?"

Penny resisted the urge to say 'I have no idea, you had better ask the several billion Mary Sues in my universe' and instead said, "Of the nine we know the histories and the stories of nearly all of them. We have family trees for the kuduk, Gimli, Aragorn and the Stewards of Gondor. What little we know of you I told you the other day in Lord Elrond's study, Lord Legolas. I only want to know what I already know about the others. Even though I can't tell you who the last two will be I know who they are and their stories as well."

Legolas nodded. "Very well, Lady Pen-ii, I understand." So the hour before lunch Legolas held her captivated as he described Mirkwood to her and his father's realm. She learnt more than she could have hoped about his family and his people. He was indeed an only child, just as his father had been before him.

"May I ask how old you are, my lord, if it is not a very rude question to ask? Forgive me if it is."

Legolas grinned, "I notice you do not ask Erestor."

"Oh, I know he has to be ancient," Penny grinned at the advisor, who raised his eyebrows at her and laughed. "Well, you must be if you saw the fall of Arnor."

"Ah, and that qualifies me as 'ancient', does it?"

"Well, perhaps not compared to Lady Galadriel or Cirdan but compared to me it does. Thinking about it, though, Aragorn is ancient compared to me."

They all roared with laughter. "Very true, Pen-ii," grinned Gandalf.

Penny hastily added to Arwen, "I didn't mean to be rude."

"Not at all, Pen-ii. I am sure his young years must seem ancient to you."

"Well, Lord Legolas?" Penny was turned back to him now.

He grinned at her mischievously. "Well, how old do your books say I am?"

"They don't. Which is why I am asking. There is no mention of you fighting with your father and grandfather in Mordor, so I presume you were too young or else not born at that time, though I could be wrong. There is much debate about this subject. You are more than five hundred years, that is all we know." Legolas nodded that this was correct. "Other than that, your age is guessed to be from five hundred all the way up to near three thousand."

Legolas grinned again, "Well it is certainly between the two."

Penny looked at him for a moment. "That's all you're going to tell me, isn't it?"

Legolas's grin broadened. "I think it only fair I maintain a little mystery."

Penny couldn't help but smile. "Fair enough, hir nin. I shall not press you. I shall make it my mission to find out though."

Legolas raised an eyebrow as he laughed softly. "Indeed?" He seemed to find this idea extremely amusing as did the others.

Penny grinned but didn't get any further since the dinner bell rang. As they stood and headed off towards the halls she turned to Arwen. "Hiril nin, if it isn't too much of a bore, I would love to hear about Lothlorien."

As Gandalf translated Arwen beamed, "But of course, Pen-ii. Both Erestor and Mithrandir could tell you much, also. We shall make sure to describe it to you when we are next all together."

Over the next few days Legolas began to take on a similar role to Gandalf with Penny. She often found him inviting her to join him in conversation with others, or else coming to join whatever crowd she was sitting with to keep her company. He too had started to sit with the hobbits at times during meals and was added to the list of those who taught or tested her Sindarin. She found that both he and Erestor would now steer her away from Boromir or else Boromir away from her. Admittedly they were both labouring under the impression that she fancied the pants off him and that things might be less awkward for both if they were kept as far away from each other as possible, but Penny was grateful nonetheless.

The hobbits had taken her under their collective wing even more, it seemed, since the 'river incident'. As strangers in Imladris also they saw Penny as a kindred spirit in some ways and they had been delighted to discover she was a tea drinker.

They invariably had a pot of tea with them at breakfast but Penny had always been too shy to say anything or ask them for any. Then, one afternoon, she had been bringing a whole barrow of potatoes and carrots to the kitchen, with Sam brandishing two huge caulifowers behind her, when she saw Merry busying himself with boiling water and a large teapot in the middle of the kitchen.

As Penny watched Merry picked up a container beside the pot and, standing on a chair, placed it back on the shelf from where he had fetched it. The elves had tea! Penny had assumed the hobbits had brought it with them from the Shire since she had not noticed any of the elves drinking any at breakfasts.

She went over to the container, lifted it down from the shelf, took off the lid and sniffed. She beamed. "Tea!" she said. Now she could come in here and make herself some all the time. Fan-bloody-tastic!

Sam and Merry looked up at each other and then at Penny with huge grins on their faces. "You know this drink?" Merry was asking her. "Would you like a cup?" He proffered a mug at her.

She nodded. "Le hannon, Kali." She used Sindarin since they knew a few words and, in addition, had learnt quite a bit during their stay in Rivendell.

Merry nodded, smiled and poured her a cup, adding milk. Then he loaded up a tray with the pot, milk, cups, a loaf of bread, pots of jam and honey, butter and two plates of cakes. He staggered under the weight of it as he lifted it, found his balance, said something over his shoulder to Sam who nodded in response and he then headed off towards the antechamber the other hobbits were in. As Penny sat to enjoy her second mug of tea in Middle Earth, Sam grinned at her, deposited his two cauliflowers on the table, picked up a bowl of fruit as well as a third plate with a large walnut cake on it and trotted off after Merry.

From then on she became an official member of the breakfast tea drinkers (namely the hobbits and Gandalf), which was wonderful since she had really missed her morning cuppa. Gandalf and the elves were very amused to see she knew this drink, which hardly anyone outside of the Shire had come across before. Even Legolas experimentally had a sip given he saw both Gandalf and Penny drinking it with obvious enthusiasm. He clearly didn't think much of it though given the expression on his face and Penny and the hobbits couldn't help but laugh.

So it was that, a few days later, she was invited to join the hobbits for afternoon tea.

The hobbits, including Bilbo, commandeered an entire small antechamber to themselves at about four every afternoon for tea. It involved huge amounts of said beverage and more cake than you could shake a stick at... and bread with jam and honey... and fruit... and even a plate of sandwiches, cold meats and cheese if Pippin could wangle them out of the cooks (translation: swipe them when no one was looking). Penny was fairly convinced that Pippin, though the youngest, could eat an entire horse at one sitting. If not an elephant.

That they could eat so much so soon after lunch and so near to dinner was astonishing.

The hobbits talked affably enough. Penny loved watching them interact: talking over each other, interrupting, finishing each others' sentences, teasing, joking and laughing kindly at each other. Bilbo was treated only moderately differently by the other four (though Sam was far more respectful towards him than the other three were) and was still the butt of many a joke and jibe. Bilbo gave as good as he got, though.

Penny, and anyone else who would listen, was given chapter and verse on life in the Shire, on hobbit genealogy (which was every bit as complex and mind-boggling as Tolkien had presented it), as well as being regaled with tales of just about every embarrassing moment any of the five hobbits seemed to have ever experienced as well as those of most of their relatives and friends. Pippin seemed to have had more 'incidents' than the rest put together which did not surprise Penny in the least.

On occasion someone else would join them. Gandalf was invariably there. Sometimes one or some of the dwarves were invited (Penny had noticed they had fairly healthy appetites as well – what WAS it about shorter races in Middle Earth that meant they seemed permanently hungry?). Boromir came once. Penny did her best to treat him no differently from anyone else while limiting her interaction with him as much as possible. She felt him watching her sometimes, though, and it made her feel distinctly uncomfortable.

Speaking of Boromir...

It was inevitable, she supposed, but it was still bloody awkward when it happened. Penny was on her way from the garden to her chambers one afternoon when she turned a corner to enter the halls only to nearly walk straight into Boromir. He was alone, of course. She groaned inwardly.

"Hir nin. Goheno nin." She smiled apologetically.

"Lady Pen-ii. Please. Forgive me. My fault entirely." He returned her smile.

Penny made to move past him quickly but felt his hand fall gently upon her arm to stop her. Oh, bugger. What now?

She turned to find he was not quite looking at her, but was gesturing to a bench near them. "Lady Pen-ii. Please. I need to speak to you."

Oh, please, no. This was going to be excruciating. Penny could feel herself cringing. 'Oh, God. Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God.' She nodded, trying to keep her face as impassive and non-committal as possible, and headed for the bench as he followed.

Once they were seated he was silent for a moment, as if trying to decide what best to say and how best to put it. "Lady Pen-ii, I realise you may well not understand me. I.. er.. I feel it only fair to tell you that I am afraid I cannot return the affection you seem to have for me, as flattering as it is." He glanced at her. In a way her not being able to understand him made it easier to be frank with her. "I feel it best to tell you this now so that you do not entertain any hope. Forgive me if this seems too frank a conversation, but I am a man of my convictions. I do believe in speaking plainly, in speaking my mind."

Penny did not understand him but could tell by his tone and general demeanour what this speech was all about. This was the 'it's not you, it's me' speech. This was the 'I am not ready to commit' speech. This was the 'not in a million years with a barge pole if you were the last woman on earth' speech. It suddenly flashed through her head that perhaps all those slash fanfics had been on to something after all.

He still couldn't look her in the eye as he continued. "Lady Pen-ii, I will be leaving Imladris soon. Me, go, soon."

Penny nodded. She had caught that much and now it was her turn to hang her head at the thought of it.

Boromir, seeing her react this way, completely misinterpreted it, of course. "It was never my intention to stay for too long. Forgive me, Pen- ii. I must return to Gondor, to Minas Tirith. Me, go, Gondor. My father needs me."

Again Penny nodded understanding the gist of what he was saying. "Denethor," she said to make it clear she understood.

Boromir smiled and nodded. "Yes, Denethor. My father. Pen-ii.. I.." He turned to her now and the expression in his grey eyes was one of deep tenderness and kindness. "There is someone waiting for me there. I love her."

Penny understood that phrase. Completely. It brought tears to her eyes, which Boromir saw but, again, completely misunderstood their cause.

'Time to be "The Understanding Woman-Spurned", then,' thought Penny.

In her fractured Sindarin she said falteringly, trying to keep her emotions under control, "I understand, Lord Boromir. Forgive me. Please. You walk Minas Tirith. Your love." She gave him a quick smile, stood and went as quickly as she could to the halls.

The tears started falling before she even made it up the stairs to her chambers. She thanked God no one passed by her or saw her in such a state. When she got to her room she did not even get any further than sliding down the closed door to the floor with her head in her hands. It was true she wept in part due to the horrendous embarrassment and awkwardness she had felt throughout all that little scene but she wept mostly for Boromir. For Boromir, this kind, gentle and noble man, and for the woman who loved him and would never see him again. She wept bitterly and long, and even once she stopped the pain and despair she felt did not leave her completely.

Her sense of impending darkness and difficult times ahead was only increased at the end of the second week of December. She had just finished her riding lesson and was heading towards the halls for the midday meal when she saw a horse, a brown stallion with one white sock, brought to a halt outside the main entrance. She recognised the horse immediately. She knew, even though the man astride the animal had his back to her, who it was. His cloak was stained with mud, his hair was lank with sweat and dirt. She knew if she got anywhere near him what he would smell like... like nothing on earth. Still she couldn't help break into a smile that quickly became a beam and then a grin as she walked towards him. She resisted the urge to run.

As he stepped down from the saddle and reached up to untie his pack he looked up and saw her heading towards him. He grinned and stopped what he was doing as she approached.

"Mae govannen, Halbarad." God, she was pleased to see him.

"Pen-ii, well met indeed. You look well. I am pleased to see you."

"I help you," she said in Sindarin and started untying his bedroll from his saddle.

Halbarad looked at her in astonishment then grinned broadly. "Your Sindarin is coming along, I see. Good. Very good. I shall have to congratulate Erestor when I see him."

Penny smiled. "Many. Maura help. Mireth, Eleniel, Celebdor, Lindir. They help my Sindarin."

Halbarad nodded. He couldn't stop beaming at her. He was amazed what nearly two months had done. He wondered what else she had been up to while he was away.

Lindir had not been far behind Penny in coming from the stables for lunch and now greeted Halbarad, taking the horse's reins to lead the stallion back to the stables. He pointed at Penny as he headed off. "She is slowly improving in her riding, Halbarad. You should come and watch her. You would be pleased."

Halbarad raised an eyebrow at her, "Riding, Pen-ii?"

She grinned and nodded, "Riding, gardening, sewing, pottery, weaving, baskets, carpentry, cooking. Many. I learn."

Halbarad laughed. Well, this was a turn up and no mistake. He looked at her. She was a completely different woman. Suddenly before him was the sum total of all those flashes of the real Penny he had seen so rarely before but had made him wonder what she was really like. She was not the timid, nervous, utterly bewildered and terrified wretch he had brought here anymore and he was glad. More than he thought possible.

As they walked up the steps together, she holding his bedroll and him his pack and water-sac, Penny could not believe how excited and proud she felt at his reaction to her Sindarin and that she was learning new things. She mentally scolded herself but she could not help herself: she was ridiculously pleased that he was pleased.

'This is not good, Pen. Get a grip. Get a bloody grip, woman,' she was thinking as they headed down a corridor.

At last he turned to her, taking his bedroll from her while saying, "Forgive me, Pen-ii, but I must see Lord Elrond as a matter of urgency with my news. You understand, of course. I do not doubt you may even know what I am to tell him and what I have found of the Nazgûl. I will see you at lunch, perhaps, or afterwards?"

She understood enough of the last question to be able to nod and repeat 'lunch' at him. He grinned, nodded, and then turned to head off down the corridor in the direction of Elrond's study in the hope of finding him there.

* * *

Author's Note: I was going to have Arwen shaving her armpits as well since Cirdan has facial hair and JRRT made it clear that elves are physically similar to humans. However it was pointed out to me that facial hair occurs only in the third age of life for elves and it might, therefore, be safer to say they have no body hair. This is what I have opted for, therefore. But really there's a case to be argued either way (but I won't get involved – it's like Balrog wings...). 

In a similar vein: JRRT said Boromir, like the last king, showed no inclination to marrying but was more interested in soldiering (see the Appendices at the end of ROTK). He was 40 when he died, so a little old to be unmarried still, but not too old by a long chalk. He may well have had someone he was courting in Minas Tirith, even betrothed to or about to be betrothed to. He may have had someone he loved from afar who never knew of his love for them. It's equally possible he said it simply to try and let Penny down gently. I offer no explanation at this time and leave it up to you, the reader, to decide.

_Hir nin_ - my lord;

_Bain_ - beautiful;

_Hiril nin_ - my lady;

_Le hannon_ - I thank thee;

_Mea govannen_ - well met


	22. A Friend In Need

**Chapter 22** _- "A Friend In Need"_

As it was Halbarad did not appear at lunch. Nor indeed was he anywhere about after it. Penny was kicking herself that she was so pleased to see him and so disappointed that he had not appeared for the meal.

The trouble was she had felt a connection to him even before they had arrived at Imladris: as being the only solid, stable, consistent thing around her when she had really felt like she was losing her mind. As a consequence she had grown to like him before she had had an opportunity to think through the implications of it. Just to realise that she now thought of him as a friend terrified her, given what she knew would happen. She was torn between delight at his being here once more and utter despair if she let her knowledge of the future encroach upon her in any way. She was, therefore, trying not to think about Halbarad at all.

Yet she could hardly stop thinking about him now she knew he was back.

She wondered how long he was staying.

Elrond had ordered food to be sent to his room for Halbarad and himself. Erestor had now joined them as well as Gandalf.

"Well, you have little more to tell us than the other scouts who have reported back to us so far, Halbarad."

"So I understand, Elrond."

Halbarad leant back in his seat near the open door to the garden sucking on his pipe. Gandalf was sat opposite him on the other side of the door also smoking. Erestor and Elrond were both at Elrond's desk (in other words as far from the fumes as it was possible to be without being rude or excluding themselves completely from the conversation).

Halbarad continued, "I have a feeling you will not hear anything different from any of the others either. No word from Aragorn as yet?"

"No. I was hoping you might have heard from him."

"Well, I ran into my cousin a few days ago who had seen him two weeks back. Same story. No sign of them other than the horses further downstream in the river."

Elrond nodded. There was a brief silence.

Halbarad, seeking to change the subject, said, "I must congratulate you, Erestor. Penny was speaking Sindarin to me when she met me as I arrived."

Erestor smiled. "She is doing well. It is slow progress, but she is getting there. She is getting a lot of help, also, as you will no doubt see at mealtimes. Maura has been particularly diligent in his testing of her vocabulary."

Halbarad raised an eyebrow. "So she has got to know the kuduk?" He looked quizzically at Gandalf as he said this.

Gandalf replied, "Yes. She even has afternoon tea with them these days. Ban and she are regular helpers in the gardens. She has become quite a feature of Imladris, I think. When she is not stumbling over half-naked elves in the rivers, that is."

There was a snort and a grin from Elrond and Erestor laughed out loud.

Halbarad, looking bemused and intrigued, smiled. "What is this?"

"Ah, well, I think Erestor is in a better position than any of us to explain," Elrond smirked into his goblet.

"Yes, thank you, Elrond. Really it was nothing, Halbarad, though she was most embarrassed was she not, Mithrandir?"

"Yes, indeed. I think she took a lot of persuading to come to dinner that evening and again to join the general company afterwards."

Halbarad was grinning like an idiot now. "What did she do?"

Erestor paused. "She did not realise there were designated washing days. She came marching down to the river with clothes under her arm to be greeted with the sight of eight semi-naked male elves."

Halbarad nearly choked on his pipe he laughed so hard and for several moments he couldn't speak or catch his breath. "You.. oh, Eru.. you ARE joking!" He laughed again, this time the others joining in, and was still sniggering when he said, "Poor Pen-ii. She must have been mortified. What happened?"

"Well, nothing, really. We had heard her coming, of course. It could only have been her. So we didn't react at all. She took one look and fled. I do not think she could have run faster if she had had an army of orcs after her." Again, there was laughter from them all.

"I heard she put Lindir in his place about it all," Gandalf's eyes were twinkling.

"Ah, yes, I heard about that as well. My daughter's doing, I believe?" Elrond could not help but smirk.

Erestor did not know about this and looked as intrigued as Halbarad. "Is this to do with that day? Lindir was there as well as I."

"Yes, he was and Arwen suspected he may try and tease Pen-ii about it. So she told Pen-ii a little something with which to counter any goading from Lindir." Gandalf's eyebrows were positively wiggling with mischief.

"I wonder how my daughter managed to convey that particular story to Pen- ii, Mithrandir? I feel sure you could enlighten us in that regard," Elrond said to him pointedly. Gandalf ignored him but his face split into a grin.

Erestor and Halbarad had exchanged a look. Both raised their eyebrows. It was Halbarad who spoke.

"You don't mean the time when he got drunk and Lady Arwen discovered him...?"

Elrond and Gandalf nodded, grinning broadly.

Erestor and Halbarad roared with laughter.

"I wish I had been there to see Pen-ii trying to convey THAT to Lindir," Halbarad was near weeping with hysterics.

Gandalf chuckled. "He was most upset, apparently. Not that she had told him she knew, but that she had been told about it in the first place. I gather, from Lady Arwen, that Lindir had tried goading her several times before she said anything. She tried to warn him before she said it, too, so she gave him every chance."

"Yes, but Lindir simply cannot help himself," Erestor countered. "Her discovering us at the river like that was an absolute gift to him. Especially given how embarrassed she was. She could barely look at me in her Sindarin lesson the next day."

"Which is no doubt why Arwen told her what she did," finished Elrond.

"Exactly," said Gandalf.

"Good for her," said Halbarad, beaming broadly.

A little later Halbarad wandered towards the gardens in the hope that Penny might be there. Elrond, Erestor and Gandalf had spoken well and warmly of her, telling him how she was settling in and what she had been up to. He knew she was no longer his responsibility, but even so he felt a little protective of her and had been concerned she might have found things difficult without him around. She had stuck to him like glue those first few days and had clearly found his presence reassuring each time things had become difficult for her.

He had thought about her while he had been away and had wondered how she was getting on. He was pleased she had found her feet at last and was making such a concerted effort to learn and fit in.

He saw her as he entered the kitchen garden. Sam was nearby digging over some bare earth ready for some late planting of cabbages. Celebdor was uprooting carrots for supper and Mireth was with him. Various other elves were ranged here and there or coming in and out with barrows, but Penny was at the far end clearing some late fallen leaves from the paths. Halbarad, smiling on seeing her, made his way towards her.

She had a shawl (a gift from Eleniel) tied round her shoulders. She was wearing a heavy apron tied round her waist, which had a large pocket at the front into which she had jammed a sharp knife, a small pair of secateurs, and a ball of string. She had leather gloves on and looked every bit the gardener. Her cheeks were red from the cold and the hard work.

She heard his footfall on the path and she looked up. She smiled, "Aiya, Halbarad."

He nodded, still smiling and returned her greeting. "Working hard I see." Her brow furrowed. "Gardening. You," he explained.

She grinned and nodded, scooping up the last of the leaves into the large basket she had with her. She stood, picking up the basket, and beckoned him to come with her with her head as she turned and walked even further down the garden. He offered to take the basket for her but she shook her head. "No need, Halbarad. It's not heavy at all." She waved the basket up and down to demonstrate. He nodded.

After she had tipped the leaves on the large leaf compost heap behind one of the screens of bushes Halbarad asked, "Are you finished for today? Can we talk a little, perhaps?"

Penny, understanding 'finished', 'today' and 'talk' nodded. In truth she could come and go as she pleased but she had no way of explaining that to Halbarad though she was sure he would know that well enough. She waved the basket at him, "Just need to put this away. Oh, and take this lot off." She gestured at the apron.

He took the basket from her as she pulled off her gloves, stuffing them into the pocket of her apron. When she tried to take the basket back from him he would not give it to her, though. She smiled and thanked him. They wandered to one of the huts where they left the basket in the corner with several others and Penny hung up her apron, replacing her tools to their places.

"We walk?" she asked Halbarad in Sindarin as she stepped back outside.

He grinned and nodded. "We walk. Yes, Pen-ii."

They headed off into the woods. Halbarad spoke first, "I hear you have been making a name for yourself." She looked at him, smiling, but clearly uncomprehendingly. "You. River. Male elves."

The look on her face was priceless. Halbarad chuckled. She blushed a vivid red.

"How the bloody hell do you..! Is nothing sacred? You haven't even been here a day and someone's told you already!" He was just grinning at her. She switched to Sindarin. "Who he talk?"

Halbarad looked at her. He thought he understood what she meant but was not sure.

She tried again. "My story. Who he talk my story?"

Yes, he had understood. "Elrond, Erestor and Mithrandir."

She stopped walking and looked at him open mouthed. "You have to be kidding me? Do the four of you really have nothing better to talk about?" She shook her head in disbelief, groaning. "It was so embarrassing, Halbarad."

He looked at her as her tone of voice changed. He could guess what she was saying. "Toloth ellyn, Halbarad. Toloth! And Erestor was one of them. Erestor!" She groaned and shook her head. She looked sideways up at him, caught his grin as he laughed softly, and chuckled. She pointed at herself, "Me? A complete bloody fool, that's what I am."

"Ah, Pen-ii. It was an honest mistake. No one blames you for it. If anything it has made you well liked: you have made them laugh. Not at your expense, though, just because it is funny."

She had not understood him but guessed he was trying to reassure her. She smiled. "Le hannon, Halbarad."

He nodded. "You are welcome. I also hear you dealt with Lindir admirably over the whole affair. I congratulate you. He can most persistent if he puts his mind to it."

"Lindir?" It was the only bit she had understood.

"Yes, Lindir. His story. That Lady Arwen told you."

Penny broke into a peal of giggles. She was in fits of hysterics and Halbarad could not help but laugh at seeing her like this.

"Ah, yes. Lindir. That WAS funny. I was most grateful to Lady Arwen about that. You should have seen his face, Halbarad, it was hysterical." She made hand gestures to indicate his blushing as she said "Lindir". She even pointed to the ears to show he had blushed all the way to the points. Halbarad roared.

They had come to a clearing surrounded by trees. There was a wooden gazebo in its centre with winter roses growing round the four pillars holding up the roof. There were two benches underneath it. They sat, still chuckling and smirking.

"I am glad you are settling in here." He realised he would have to talk more simply. "I happy - see you learning and happy here. In Imladris."

She nodded.

"Halbarad?"

He looked at her.

"How long are staying?" She tried Sindarin. "You. Here. Days?" She turned her hand as she said 'days' and tried to make it sound questioning. She counted on her fingers, "One? Two? Three? A week?"

He smiled but his face was serious now. "Not long, Pen-ii. There is much to be done." He pointed outwards. "Out there. Much danger. You know, 'danger'?"

She was looking at him, her face serious also. She could guess what he was saying. She nodded. "You have a job to do, I know." In Sindarin she said, "Dúnedain. Big work. Eriador."

He nodded, his face grim.

She stood, trying to break the mood. "Tolo. I have things to show you."

He looked at her as she said for him to come and look. She was smiling, so he returned her smile and followed, glad to have something to distract him.

She showed him her weaving, her basket (nearly finished) and the little pot she had made, newly fired, and waiting to be glazed. In every place they went the elves told him of her diligence and conscientiousness. How she would visit them every day and, even though she had little or no skill, kept trying and was at last showing signs of improvement and learning in a few things.

Halbarad was amazed and pleased. She had seemed so aggressive and selfish when he had first met her. Though he well understood now why she had been so it was clear, had been clear to them all, that her culture and time was very different from their own. She had had a lot to learn. He had worried she might have found it too much, too overwhelming, though he had known that the elves would have been very patient and kind with her. He was glad to see his fears had been unfounded. He, dared he say it, was proud of her.

As they headed back towards the halls they met Frodo and Pippin. They grinned and greeted Halbarad warmly before Frodo said, "It is nearly teatime. Will you both join us? We have discovered Pen-ii is a tea drinker, Halbarad. So rare for a big person, though Gandalf likes it too of course. She joins us every afternoon now."

Halbarad made his apologies, "It is a most kind invitation, Maura, but I must decline. I have travelled far yesterday and this morning and I need to rest and have a bath before I can present myself before the general company tonight, I feel."

Penny's ears pricked up, "Bath? Hot water? I help. We help." And before anyone could stop her she was off up the steps and heading down the corridor towards the water room.

Halbarad caught up with her, "Really, Pen-ii. There is no need. I can manage."

Penny shot him a look, "Hot water big work. I help." She had a look in her eye that told Halbarad there was no point arguing. She was already saying 'bath' and 'help' to the one or two elves they met in the corridor who immediately nodded, turned, and joined them in heading towards the water room.

She did not know how to light the fire but she filled one cauldron with water. Halbarad and an elf took a tub to his room while she followed with cold water. She helped with the hot water too when it was ready. Thinking about it later she realised she had done it as much to prove to him that she could cope, that she was learning and, as much as anything, she was not really the 'Bitch-Cow from Hell' he had had to deal with all the way from Bree.

Once they were all done, the elves headed off, leaving Halbarad standing in the doorway to his chambers and Pen-ii about to follow the elves. He called her name. She turned back to him. He smiled gently, "Le hannon, Pen- ii."

"No problem, Halbarad. Besides you need a bath. You stink." She pointed at him and then held her nose. Halbarad's eyebrows shot up as he gasped and then roared with laughter. Grinning, Penny turned and headed off down the corridor leaving Halbarad watching her go as he stood in his doorway, chuckling.

He was there at supper, his hair still damp, but freshly shaved and with a clean tunic and pair of leggings. There was no space near him or next to him so Penny ate with Celebdor and Eleniel but Halbarad flashed her a grin as she came in the dining hall.

After supper she found herself in the Hall of Fire as usual, listening to the singing. She did not think she could ever get tired of it in all honesty. Sometimes she would catch a name or a place mentioned and could hazard a guess at the song being sung or the tale it told. Mostly it just washed over her. Still beautiful, though.

She was sat on a bench against one wall, her eyes closed. When she opened them she saw Legolas glance in her direction and beckon her to join him. She stood. He was with Gandalf, Halbarad, and Elrond. She joined them and greeted them and they acknowledged her greeting but carried on talking. Another song was about to begin so, rather than disturb those who wished to listen, Elrond motioned them through a door into the large antechamber so they could talk freely.

As they did so Halbarad hung back a little and said something, with a mischievous grin on his face, to Penny. She furrowed her brows at him. Gandalf's deep voice came from behind her, "He is asking if he smells less now he has had a bath."

Penny laughed. "Yes, Halbarad. Much better."

He grinned at her.

Hoo boy. This was not good. He had a nice smile. It lit up his entire face. She felt a pang of distress wash over her again as once more the reality of the situation hit home.

She did not know him well enough to really fancy him. He was attractive, sure, but quite a bit older (in terms of how old he looked) than the blokes she normally went for. She did not like to think about how old he actually was: probably old enough to be her grandfather and then some. For all she knew he could even be married.

No, that was not the problem. It was that, like Boromir, he was such a nice guy. She already found the Boromir situation difficult enough to handle as it was and she knew Halbarad a lot better than she knew Boromir. That made it much worse because she was already in the habit of treating him no differently than anyone else, in fact being more familiar with him than anyone else except possibly Mireth and Eleniel now. Every time she forgot that 'prior knowledge' in her head for a moment, a few minutes or even an hour or two and treated him as the friend he had become she found herself liking him more and more. Bugger it.

They had reached the antechamber, were finding seats. The chatter was still going. Arwen had joined them. Penny only took all this in distractedly, her thoughts elsewhere. She had not realised, though, that her brow had furrowed so her anxiety was clear upon her face and the conversation had died away slowly as, one by one, they noticed and wondered what she was considering. They murmured quietly to each other, commenting on it.

/_What is it, Penny? Is anything amiss_/

She started in her seat, staring at Gandalf. "What? Hmm? Sorry, I was miles away. No, nothing is wrong. Why do you ask?"

She suddenly realised they were all looking at her. Oh, bugger. "Umm. Why's everyone looking at me?"

"You seemed distracted. Even worried, Penny."

"No, Mithrandir. No. Not at all." She did not even sound convincing to herself. She realised she was making them all distinctly uncomfortable. "Perhaps I had better go. Goheno nin." Halbarad reached out a hand to stop her and reassure her but she was out of the door with as much dignity as she could muster before he could do so.

Elrond sighed. "It must be difficult for her. Not simply to know our fates, but to try to not think about it. A great burden for her." The others nodded.

Arwen exchanged a look with Gandalf. "I will go after her. She might appreciate some company."

Gandalf nodded. "I shall come with you to translate if you wish."

Halbarad had stood also but Arwen waved them both to their seats. "Let me go alone. If I need translation or she needs more company I can call for you."

Halbarad nodded and sat. He had always been there for Penny when he was last here. He felt he should be there for her again. Why in Mordor did he feel so beholden to her? He barely knew her, for Eru's sake. He watched Arwen as she left, realising that a lot had changed while he had been away and he was vaguely annoyed with himself that it mattered to him.

Arwen found her outside, shivering slightly in the cold, but at least away from everyone else. "Pen-ii?"

Penny turned and gave her a sad smile. "Goheno nin, hiril nin. I didn't mean to upset or depress everyone. It's not what you think. Or what you imagine it might be. Well, it is in a way, but not... Oh, I can't explain. It doesn't matter. I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry." She sat on the steps, her head in her hands trying not to burst into tears.

Boromir telling her about his love in Minas Tirith and now Halbarad back and being his usual charming, affable self. It was all too much to cope with.

Arwen said nothing, just sat next to Penny quietly. She put her arm about Penny's shoulder and gazed out into the night sky. Then, quietly, she started to sing.

As Penny listened the tune seemed to fill her head and took her far away. She did not understand and yet somehow she guessed this song was about men, about how the elves saw them. It suddenly occurred to her that elves had to face what she was facing all the time. Seventy or eighty years – the average life of a man – was nothing for them so they would have seen numerous generations born only to then see them then fade and die in, what was to them, a mere instant. Friends would have been loved and lost countless times for them. Every human they met and knew they would lose.

As the song continued, Arwen's beautiful voice filling the night air with her melody, Penny was struck by what Arwen herself would have faced when she chose to marry Aragorn. Penny realised she could have no comprehension what that must have been like for her, or those involved. Arwen would face Aragorn's death and live on after it. She would then face her own: a concept so utterly alien to the elves.

Penny found herself weeping uncontrollably as the song washed over her. She wept for Boromir and Halbarad. She wept for the generations of men that the elves had seen fall. She wept for Aragorn and Arwen. She wept for Elrond and how he would sail west knowing he would never see his daughter again.

She had no idea what was the actual meaning of the song, but it had helped. It put it all in perspective somehow. It showed Penny she was not alone in the pain she was facing, in the kind of knowledge she had. All mortals had to die sometime, sooner or later, and for the elves it was always 'sooner'. She would have to find a way of dealing with it and carrying on regardless, just as they did. She could not allow it to effect her so in how she dealt with people. The elves did not when they dealt with mortals and that very mortality would be staring any and every elf in the face. For Gandalf also, she suddenly realised.

As the last notes died away into the air, and still Arwen did not move or speak, Penny felt much calmer and more focused than she had in a while. What would be would be. She would just have to accept it. No point in crying over it or beating her head against a wall wishing it wasn't: such was the way of things, that was all.

She did not turn to Arwen as she said, very quietly, "Le hannon, hiril nin."

Arwen nodded, smiled a little sadly and hugged her arm a little tighter round Penny's shoulder while the stars twinkled brightly in the sky above them.

* * *

_toloth_ - eight

_ellyn_ - male elves

_tolo_ - come

_Goheno nin_ - forgive me

_Le hannon_ - I thank thee

_Hiril nin_ - my lady


	23. So Long, Farewell

**Chapter 23** _- "So Long, Farewell..."_

The day after Halbarad's arrival, Mireth and Gandalf met Penny after her riding lesson. Mireth had a pair of leggings with her and Gandalf was explaining their purpose. These were to be worn under her skirts for her riding lessons from now on. She was to start riding astride the animal since she would need to learn how to trot and then progress to a canter and gallop. These last two were too precarious for her to try – as someone without the innate balance, skill and athleticism of an elf – sitting sideways on. She did not flinch when Gandalf explained that Elrond wanted her to learn to move a horse fast: that it may save her life one day.

"If Rivendell is attacked, for example, you may need to escape yrch or worse, Lady Pen-ii. It is a serious business."

She did not, of course, explain that she would never need to escape yrch in Rivendell.

It did occur to her, though, that maybe Rivendell had been subject to some sort of lesser attack that was never mentioned. There was little enough in the books about the big attacks on Lothlorien and Dale, so it was always possible. She knew there were wolves around out there, even now. Suddenly she was very grateful that Elrond was taking so much trouble over her.

Glorfindel was there for breakfast the next day. Aragorn arrived late in the evening. One or two more Dúnedain and elves returned or stayed briefly over the next day or two, till soon all the scouts had reported back to Elrond except Elladan and Elrohir.

Penny found herself better able to cope with things since that evening on the steps with Arwen. She had a melancholy about her that a few sensed – Gandalf, Elrond, and Arwen in particular – but it was not strong, and she did her best to cover it. She was aware, particularly with the return of Aragorn and Glorfindel, that it would all begin very soon.

She did her best not to think about it, though, but if sometimes the realisation hit her in a wave (as would sometimes happen, especially if she saw Boromir and Halbarad together), she reminded herself of Arwen's song, and of what every elf must feel every time they looked at a mortal, even when they looked at Penny herself. It did not make it less distressing or painful but it made it seem more 'the natural way of things': an inevitability that would come to all rather than a blow from out of nowhere visited solely on two individuals. Arwen had given her a sense of perspective that was helping her cope a little better, basically.

Penny managed to convey to Arwen that her bleeding was due in a few days and that there was no way she could ride when that was going on. Arwen said she would talk to Lindir, explaining that there were things Penny needed to do and learn that Arwen would be helping her with and that her mornings would be otherwise occupied for a week. As it happened Lindir did, inevitably, put two and two together and come up with four, of course, but kept his mouth shut and decided discretion was the better part of valour. For once.

Mireth had given Penny a combination of herbs to make an infusion from and drink as a herbal tea once a day for a week prior to her bleeding starting. As a result she did not feel nearly so ill and had little cramping when it started, which meant her routine was not disturbed as it had been the last time.

In the meantime, though, she still had a day or two of riding lessons and the morning after Aragorn's arrival she had her first lesson astride the horse. She still had not mastered the trotting sideways on terribly well, but in the new sitting position she certainly found it a lot easier. Her skirts were big enough that, if she arranged them a little, only her ankles showed or possibly a little calf. Not that it mattered: the leggings came down to the anklebone.

However, she was mortified when, halfway through her lesson, she glanced up to see a familiar figure leaning against the fence of the paddock with a pipe in his mouth and a smile on his face. As she caught his eye, Halbarad nodded in approval. She flushed and immediately mistimed her rise, got hopelessly out of rhythm with the horse and ended up bouncing up and down like some idiotic jack-in-the-box.

There was a word of irritation from Lindir. She slowed the horse to a walk, recovering herself, then looked up to find Halbarad had left. She groaned. She felt very foolish for having bungled it quite so badly. He had completely thrown her.

What the hell was he doing coming to gawk at her like that, like she was some kind of spectator sport? He might have guessed he would put her off. He had hardly made himself discrete, either, puffing on that bloody stinky pipe of his. Ranger? One 'skilled in not being seen'? Hardly!

She snickered.

Lindir raised an eyebrow at her. The expression on his face showed he was not amused. She had not fluffed her rise and fall quite so badly for a couple of days, and it should be easier, not harder, astride the saddle. He was less than impressed. He knew perfectly well what had happened. He had smelt the pipesmoke even before he had seen Halbarad. He would have to have a word with him about putting his pupil off like that. He had been far more discrete the day before: Penny had not even noticed him watching her. Coming to see how she was doing was one thing, throwing her completely was something else.

"Concentrate, Pen-ii, Halbarad or no Halbarad. In fact, it should not matter if the entirety of Imladris were staring at you, you still need to concentrate on what you are doing. Now, try once more. Again, Pen-ii. Trot."

After lunch she managed to catch up with Gandalf as he went for his regular 'perambulation to aid digestion', as he put it. Aragorn was deep in conversation with him, Halbarad walking beside them both nodding as he listened.

Penny had not eaten with them since she had come late from her riding lesson and had sat with Eleniel instead.

"Mithrandir?"

He turned, smiling on seeing her. "Ah, Pen-ii. Do join us if you are not off somewhere or have things to do."

"Le hannon, Mithrandir. I don't want to interrupt you, though."

"Nonsense, nonsense. Not at all. I do not think there is much we could discuss that you do not already know, in truth, not that you would understand much of what was said anyway unless I choose to translate for you. You are not disturbing us."

She nodded and thanked them once more. She was not sure how she was going to broach the subject but she was glad Aragorn was here since it involved him. "I have a request," she said at last.

They looked at her. "Indeed?" asked Gandalf.

"Yeah. I... well... I realise that Narsil will be reforged at some point soon. I would like to watch if it would be alright, if I wouldn't get in the way."

Gandalf grinned and, after he translated, there was a moment's silence before Halbarad and Aragorn, catching each other's eye, burst out laughing.

Penny looked baffled, then vaguely irritated. "What? What did I say that's so hilarious?" Then it dawned on her, "Don't tell me it's already done? I've missed it? No! Please, no! It's... it's... well it's the _reforging_ of _Narsil_. This is, like, HUGE! This is history in the making!"

As Gandalf translated the two Dúnedain recovered themselves, looking more serious and with not a little interest at what she was saying.

Aragorn smiled gently. "No, you have not missed it. It is not yet complete, but it has already begun and very nearly finished. How long did you think it would take to make a sword, even to reforge one from an already existent blade?"

"Ahh... err... a day or two? Maybe a week?"

There were gales of laughter as this was translated. Halbarad was wiping tears from his eyes, "Ai, Pen-ii, you are priceless!"

"I take it that it takes a bit longer, then," said Penny sourly. They did not need to find her ignorance quite so hilarious. It was hardly her fault. "You know, in my time swords haven't been used in battle, seriously, for about two hundred years. No one uses them."

This was greeted with confusion and astonishment. "There is no war?" Gandalf asked.

"Oh no! There's loads of war. More than ever before, probably. It's just that they don't use swords."

Her voice trailed off as she saw Gandalf looking at her but not translating. He had very deliberately avoided questions about her time and he was possibly about to find out more than he would ever want to know if he followed this subject to its conclusion.

"Mithrandir, you are... well, you are who you are. You know better than most, perhaps, what men are capable of. They don't use swords. They use things that are much worse. Things I really don't think you want to know about."

Gandalf nodded. "No, Pen-ii, I am not sure I do." He turned to the other two, "Let us just say that they have no need of swords since other weapons have superseded them. I do not know what. She would prefer not to say and I, for one, would prefer not to know. I do not think I would like what I would learn."

Aragorn and Halbarad looked bewildered by this, but both knew Gandalf well enough to take his word on trust absolutely and without question. If he said it was better not to know then it was indeed better not to know.

"Some people still make swords, but only for people who pretend at this sort of thing. They recreate wars or battles from long ago, but it's not real."

They looked slightly confused at this. War and battle were serious matters. Why anyone would want to 'play' at it was completely beyond them.

"You mean children? Small boys?" Aragorn asked.

Penny snickered. "In a manner of speaking." She coughed and tried to look serious. "Umm, no, not really. Just really sad adult men." She looked at Halbarad. "That's what I thought you were when I first met you, Halbarad. One of these blokes who pretends at being a warrior."

Halbarad was managing to convey astonishment, amusement, indignation and bafflement all at once. It was quite an achievement.

"When I touched your sword that time... well... I was not expecting it to be sharp. I was very frightened when I found out it was. Thought you were a madman. I didn't think I would survive the night. Where I come from people just don't walk about carrying weapons. You have to be mad, bad or dangerous to know if you do. It was the reason why..." She looked at him quite seriously for a moment before she continued, "It was the reason I was so rude with you those first few days. I treated you with no respect and I still feel guilty about it. If I had known, Halbarad, if I had realised for one moment that you were _really_ Halbarad, or even a Dúnedan I had never heard of, I would never had spoken to you the way I did. I hope you can believe that."

As Gandalf translated Halbarad's smile warmed. He nodded. He had guessed most of this, had realised that her behaviour in Bree had been entirely due to her struggle to accept where she was and what she was involved in. It was nice to hear such a detailed apology from her, and to know that his name was enough for her to consider he needed respect. Nice to know his work, and that of the other Rangers, was actually appreciated at last.

'Even if it is two Ages from now,' he thought ruefully.

"Do not worry, Pen-ii. I have told you before it is all in the past, forgotten. Still..." His eyes twinkled a little. "You certainly showed some spirit. No one would dare speak to me the way you did."

"I realise that. You were very patient with me. I must have driven you mad."

"Well..." He nodded and, catching each other's eye, they laughed.

Penny continued. "Look, the point is that I know nothing about swords or how they are made or how long it takes. So forgive me but you shouldn't laugh at my complete ignorance."

Halbarad and Aragorn murmured apologies.

"It is a long process," Aragorn explained, "and takes nearly a month. They have been working on Narsil for a few weeks already. I am surprised you had not noticed in your visits to the forgery."

She opened her mouth to say something then closed it again as her brows furrowed. She cast her mind back. Now she thought about it, she had seen them working on something sticklike in the past few weeks. She had thought it might be a blade, in fact it had become fairly obviously one as she had watched, but it had never occurred to her that it was Narsil or, rather, Anduril. Nor had it occurred to her it was the same sword she was seeing being forged every time.

She was annoyed she had not seen the earlier processes now, from when the shards were first brought there and onwards. The noise and heat meant she rarely stayed with the blacksmiths for very long and invariably headed over to the craft workshops whenever she was in that direction after only a short time.

They could see her disappointment.

"Tell you what, Pen-ii, we shall head over there now and you can see it. I shall explain what has happened so far and what is yet to come. How would that be?"

She beamed at Aragorn. "That would be wonderful, Aragorn. Le hannon."

Halbarad was pleased he came with them. Watching the expression on her face was extraordinary, as both Aragorn and Gandalf agreed afterwards. The awe and reverence with which she watched, almost hardly daring to breathe, as the metal was heated, hammered, and heated again, struck home to all three just how much she knew about their history... and their futures.

The following day Halbarad was to leave Imladris once more. The wolves were gathering in larger numbers in the north and there was a lot to do.

He came to track Penny down at her riding lesson. He called to Lindir, saying something to him as the elf turned to him. Lindir called "Stop" to Penny and then pointed at Halbarad, gesturing for her to go over to him.

"I have come to bid you farewell once more, Pen-ii."

Understanding 'navaer' well enough, she could not hide the disappointment in her face though she tried her damnedest to.

Halbarad smiled ruefully, "Pen-ii, you cannot get too dependent on me. You are finding your own feet here. Besides," he looked at her, "I do not want to give you the wrong impression." She would not understand him, could not, but it needed to be said.

He had been shocked to hear, yesterday afternoon, of her less than subtle behaviour with Boromir.

It had been Aragorn who had said something. Legolas was with them, and they had seen Penny walking in the distance, see Boromir and suddenly veer off in a completely different direction, blushing furiously.

"She does her best to avoid Boromir, does she not?" Aragorn had said.

"Ah, so you have noticed too?" Legolas had smirked. "So has Boromir."

Legolas was not inclined to divulge what he knew, but when Aragorn jokingly said something about 'it's as if she has some infatuation for him' Legolas found it hard to keep his face entirely impassive.

Aragorn, chuckling, had then caught Legolas's eye, seen the expression on his face and gasped, "No! You ARE joking, Legolas?"

Legolas then had little choice but shake his head and, as Aragorn fell about with laughter, explain the whole affair.

Aragorn had found the whole thing nearly as amusing as Legolas clearly did, but Halbarad had been irritated by it. She had risen so much in his estimation that for him to suddenly discover she had been behaving like some idiotic love-sick girl irked him beyond belief.

That evening, as he had watched Penny sitting next to Miriel in a crowd of elves in the Hall of Fire, he had suddenly remembered all that had irritated him about her when he had first met her: her arrogance, her impatience, her utter refusal to behave in a reasonable manner or treat him with anything less than contempt, as well as her sheer wilfulness and bloody-mindedness.

He had watched, too, as Boromir, talking with one of the hobbits, had joined the company she was with and how Penny had, after a few minutes innocuous chatter, left the group entirely to join Legolas, Aragorn and Elrond.

Not before she had cast a surreptitious glance in Boromir's direction, though.

Halbarad saw it clearly enough but only because he was watching her intently. He found himself muttering a phrase he had not used of Penny since a day or two after they had left Bree: "Stupid bloody woman."

By the Valar, she had some audacity, he had to give her that. Did she not know who she was fawning over? None other than the eldest son of the Steward – he who ruled in place of the King himself – the_ Steward_ of Gondor.

Halbarad stopped himself. What was he thinking? Of course she knew. That just made it even worse. What was she playing at? There was 'instant physical attraction' and then there was 'making a damn fool of yourself'. She was fortunate that, as far as Halbarad knew, only a small number of people were aware of it. That Boromir knew was bad enough, though. He shook his head. Unbelievable.

In a way it had made the inevitable leaving of Imladris all the easier for him. She had no need of him any more, that much was certain. Not that he had entertained any thoughts of her in that regard, but it still hit home that he, really, knew nothing about her, that any friendship he felt for her was based on the trauma she had been through with only him to lean on and nothing more.

As he sat there that night, still watching her, he remembered her distress, her terror, her near madness as it had seemed to him then. Yes, she had needed him. Needed him and been grateful for him even in the midst of her raging at him. Now, it seemed, she was so at home she could make eyes at the sons of near princes with impunity. Halbarad's eyes narrowed. She needed a damn good slap, he thought to himself.

It was not the first time he had thought THAT, either.

"I am leaving Imladris," he was now saying to her as he stood by the paddock fence. "As I told you I must. I thought I should bid you farewell."

Penny was picking something up from him. Some vibe. As if he was pissed off with her. She had noticed it yesterday a little as well. He had not been quite so warm with her or as friendly over supper, nor this morning at breakfast. In fact at breakfast he had barely said two words to her and had very deliberately ignored her to the best of his ability. Or at least that was how it had felt at the time.

She wondered if she had done some massive social 'faux-pas' yet _again_ (it would not surprise her if she had) or if this was just him brooding on the things he had to do or even Aragorn heading South. His good friend (best friend perhaps?) was, for all Halbarad knew, facing certain death by walking into Mordor with the One Ring. That could not be easy for him.

'About as easy as knowing you will go to Rohan in a couple of months and not come back, I suppose,' Penny thought to herself.

"Halbarad is everything okay? Are you upset with me?"

He did not understand her question and there was no way she knew of making herself understood. The concern in her eyes, though, told him enough to guess near enough what she was asking. He did not reply.

Penny could have sworn his eyes flashed and narrowed a little. She was suddenly reminded of how he had been in moments of irritation and rage in Bree. Back then she would have laughed in his face at his ridiculousness. Now...

Bloody hell, what HAD she done?

Before she could ask or say anything more he nodded and, with a fairly curt 'Navaer', he was gone. Penny watched his retreating form and felt tears prick her eyes. He had not even commented on her riding. Not once.

As she turned the horse and went back to her lesson she could feel her annoyance building. It was as if a black cloud had settled over her. The fact that she was 'due' tomorrow or the next day did not help her peevishness.

God, he was an irritable sod! Every time she thought he was a pleasant enough guy, a good friend, someone she could think of as her rock and someone she could turn to, he managed to utterly piss her off or prove her wrong.

She was aware her teeth were grinding. She glanced up to see Lindir was regarding her with some interest. "Oh bog off, Lindir," she muttered to herself, "You are the last thing I need right at this moment."

As soon as her lesson finished she ran down the path to the gate, hoping he might still be here, that she could find out what was going on. He had explained to her, with Gandalf's help, of course, that Rangers often called in to Rivendell to let Elrond know what was happening. Gildor called occasionally too. Halbarad had explained that Gildor had been with him when they had first seen her. She had not quite known how to deal with that piece of information. Anyway, the point was that she knew that it was likely she would see him again before...

She could hear talking as she drew nearer through the trees. Then she saw them: Aragorn, Halbarad, Gandalf and Elrond.

Gandalf and Elrond were standing back a little, side by side, but Aragorn and Halbarad were talking quietly, earnestly. Penny slowed, then stopped, as she watched Halbarad clasp Aragorn's forearm with his hand and then Aragorn pull Halbarad into an embrace for a few moments as they patted each others' backs.

She should not be here. It was not her place to intervene in this.

Her throat tightened, and not just from the touching scene she had witnessed, the shared moment of comradeship between the two who, as far as they knew, may not see each other ever again. She was desperately sad that Halbarad was leaving while upset with her about something. She did not even know why, or what she could do about it either. There was no way she would be able to speak to him in front of the others as it was.

She turned and walked back towards the halls as quietly as she could.

Elrond had glanced up in her direction, seen her arrive, hesitate and then turn without a word towards the halls. Gandalf too at noticed her approach and retreat.

"Pen-ii," Elrond called to her.

She stopped, not turning round at first and muttered a curse under her breath. When she did turn, Elrond was beckoning her over to them. As she joined them she was apologetic.

"I did not mean to intrude, only to say goodbye properly."

Halbarad's face showed nothing, though it was clear to the three males, who knew him very well indeed, that he was being quite cool and stiff as he nodded his head to her, with the barest, thinnest of smiles.

"Navaer, Pen-ii."

That was all he said.

He turned the horse, raising his hand in farewell to Elrond, Gandalf and Aragorn, and headed down the path to the gate.

Penny realised she had been snubbed. Not only that, she had been snubbed with Elrond, Gandalf and Aragorn as witnesses. Her cheeks flushed in anger and shame. What on earth had she done to deserve this? She was mortified and distressed. She could not let him go like this. She simply could not.

As she stood there in shock and bewilderment, a thought occurred to her. If he was THAT pissed off with her he might deliberately avoid coming to Rivendell and she might never see him again.

That settled it. She ran after him.

"Halbarad! Wait!"

He was quite some way down the path, passing through the gate. He did not stop his horse. He could not be doing with her. She was stupid, childish and clearly not worth the effort he had expended on her. Let Elrond deal with her and her ridiculous behaviour. He had had enough of her.

"Halbarad! Saes! Halbarad!"

He gritted his teeth, stopped his horse and turned.

"Yes!"

"Aragorn, why would Halbarad be angry with Lady Pen-ii? Did he say anything to you?" Gandalf's voice was quiet, his expression thoughtful as they watched this little scene just beyond the gates unfold.

Aragorn's brow furrowed. "No. I do not know what this is about." He paused. "Unless..."

"Unless?"

"Well, he was less than amused to discover she had been mooning over Boromir." Aragorn smirked. "Personally I think it amusing, if extraordinary. She never fails to entertain, does she? Erestor told me about the river incident as well." He chuckled.

Gandalf's eyebrows had raised a little as Aragorn had spoken. "How did you know about Boromir?"

"Ah, well her behaviour has been fairly obvious. I noticed it, mentioned it to Legolas and the expression on his face told Halbarad and me all we needed to know. He then explained what had occurred between you all when she had actually admitted it. As I say, Halbarad did not seem to find it nearly as amusing as Legolas and I."

Gandalf nodded. He exchanged a glance with Elrond.

"In which case I think we had best leave them to it. This will not be a scene either will wish to have witnessed, I imagine."

Elrond and Aragorn followed Gandalf through the trees back to the halls.

Penny came to stand beside the horse, looking up at Halbarad. The look in his eye was hard and cold.

"Halbarad, saes. What have I done? Please, tell me. Why are you angry with me?"

He sat in the saddle, impassive, not even bothering to respond to what he clearly did not understand. He wondered how much time would be wasted before he could leave her, no doubt snivelling and hollering at him, and get on his way.

She said in Sindarin, "Why you...?" and then furrowed her brows and tried to look cross.

He understood that. He looked at her for a minute or two wondering whether it was worth saying anything or not. She would not understand him so there seemed little point, but then if she really could not see how outrageous her behaviour had been, then it would be his pleasure to tell her.

"Why am I angry? I am not angry, Pen-ii. Far from it. I am disappointed, I suppose. Disappointed and saddened. Given what I had seen of how you had changed so much during your stay here I thought I had seen the Pen-ii I had always suspected you might be. You have proved me wrong."

He could see this was entirely going over her head. He could also see the bewilderment and distress in her face. He sighed in annoyance.

"You fawning over Boromir, Pen-ii. He is the Steward of Gondor's son. He has been most gracious about it all, I am sure, but I was appalled."

The colour had drained from Penny's face. Her voice was very quiet. "Boromir? What about Boromir?"

He could see her breathing had quickened, that she was looking shocked.

"You." Halbarad said. Then he patted his chest above his heart. "Boromir."

For a moment Penny could not believe what she was hearing. Her eyes filled with tears. Keeping one hand on the horse's neck she turned away from Halbarad slightly with a sob.

Her mind was reeling. What was she going to do? He was the only one to have reacted so strongly, so angrily. She could not bear the idea of him being upset with her, or even her not seeing him again, and yet how could she possibly explain this?

She turned to look at him. He could see the tears already streaming down her face. He guessed she was at this moment too upset to speak because he could see her struggling to even keep her sobs under control. He was glaring at her. He was all the more irritated by her now making such a scene about it all.

"Halbarad, I... It's not what you think. You have to believe me Halbarad. Saes. I cannot tell you, but... it's not what you think."

There was something in her tone: the despair, the agony, and the clear pleading that made Halbarad look at her more closely. What was going on?

"Pen-ii?"

They looked at each other for a moment. Penny glanced back in the direction of the halls, saw that they were, in fact, alone now, and made a decision.

She said, in Sindarin, "Not I love Boromir, Halbarad." Her voice broke as she said it, the tears falling fast.

Halbarad was staring at her, his face serious, his voice quiet and threatening. "What are you talking about, Pen-ii? You said to Elrond, Erestor, Gandalf and Legolas that you found him attractive."

She had understood enough to know what he had said. She looked at him and repeated, "Not I love Boromir, Halbarad."

"Elbereth, Pen-ii! Either you are lying to me now or you have lied to four noble people each one worth more than you could ever be. Either way I am less than impressed, Pen-ii. I have had enough of this. I am going."

He moved his horse forward only for her to say, in Sindarin, "Stop, Halbarad. Please!"

He did stop and, breathing hard in his irritation, glared at her.

She took a few breaths, looked him in the face and said the Sindarin for 'two' and 'month', then "Boromir" and "yrch," and then she reached up behind Halbarad to touch the base of his quiver. She then tapped her chest several times, as if hit by arrows.

She wept as she looked at him, never taking her eyes off him, hoping and praying that he had finally understood her.

He had.

He stared at her in disbelief.

Suddenly he realised. He realised why she had tried to avoid Boromir, why she had been left little option but lie when confronted by Legolas. In that instant the sheer enormity of the kind of foreknowledge she had hit home to him. They had known she knew the outcome, the events that would take place. It had occurred to Halbarad that she would know who would die, but he had not stopped to consider what that knowledge would be like for her to deal with, let alone imagined it would be people she would get to know so intimately. Though, of course, it had always been a possibility.

He also realised that she would have only told him this because she knew that, since he was leaving and would not be back before the Nine Walkers left, there was no danger in him having this information. He realised that otherwise she would have been forced to lie to him as well, even though she would have known she might lose his friendship in doing so.

Without a word he got down from the horse, stood in front of her for a moment, and then put his arms about her shoulders and let her weep into his chest.

They stayed like that for several minutes.

At last she calmed and he pulled back to look down at her. "Ai, Pen-ii. Forgive me. I understand now. I am sorry."

She nodded but said nothing.

As he looked at her Halbarad realised how vulnerable she was, even now, even though she was among his friends and was being well looked after. The knowledge she had was a terrible burden. Then and there he resolved to look after her, one way or another. Even after the war he would be her protector and friend.

"I have to go, Pen-ii. But do not fear, I shall be back as soon as I may to see how you are faring."

She smiled at him, thinly, and he turned to climb into his saddle. Then he looked at her, holding his hand out for hers. She took it and smiled up at him.

"May Elbereth make you strong enough to cope with your burden, Pen-ii."

"May Elbereth protect you, Halbarad."

He smiled, squeezed her hand as he murmured 'navaer' and then moved off through the trees.

Just before he came to a bend in the path, he turned, saw her still standing there watching him leave, raised his hand in farewell and then was lost from her sight as he disappeared under the trees.

* * *

_saes_ - please

_navaer_ - farewell

Apologies for the delay in posting but my poor beta is rushed off her feet at the moment. I am actually posting this prior to beta-ing and will post the corrected version as soon as it is done, so please bear with any typos I have not spotted.

Thank you for your patience. :)

I would like to thank everyone for their kind reviews of chapters 21 and 22, which I have only just been able to access due to the various problems has been having recently. My most sincere thanks to the two people who have given me the REAL names of Gollum and Deagol! hugs you both I only recently realised that using 'Smeagol' and 'Deagol' would not have been correct but had not yet come across their real names in my research (bizarrely). I will correct those bits as soon as I am able.


	24. Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu!

**Chapter 24** _- "...Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu!"_

Penny was not entirely sure she had done the right thing. She also felt she had had little choice, though. She trusted Halbarad, trusted he would not do anything or say anything to prevent it happening. He would understand the importance of that. She would not have even considered telling him were that not the case. Penny even wondered if, being a warrior, one who looked death in the face on a regular basis, such knowledge would not be so shocking, perhaps, as it was to her. Death was not the rarefied thing it was for Penny where it was the 'non-issue': never spoken about, never referred to. She had never seen a dead body. She did not know anyone who had. Here death was a part of life.

The most important point was that Halbarad would not be returning before the Fellowship left. His farewell with Aragorn alone made that patently obvious. If there had been any danger of his coming back to Rivendell before they left then she would not have told him. It would have broken her heart to do it, but she would not have said a word.

She wondered if Halbarad realised that. She suspected he probably did.

After lunch Gandalf took her gently by the arm and steered her into a lonely corridor. "Well, my dear, did you tell him?"

She looked at him, not sure she understood him. "Told who, Mithrandir?"

He smiled softly. "Halbarad. About Boromir. The real reason you have been avoiding him."

Penny felt herself colouring slightly. While she had suspected Gandalf had partially guessed the reason behind her behaviour, it had never been openly discussed. He had certainly never mentioned the fact that it was anything other than what she had said to Elrond, Erestor, Legolas and himself that day.

He could see her discomfort. "Do not fear, Pen-ii, I would not ask you for the real reason, but you must have known I knew you were lying that time in Elrond's study. Not that I blame you. You were left little choice but to agree to Legolas's presumption."

She nodded, still unsure of what to say.

"So then I take you told Halbarad?"

"In part, yes, but only in part." She looked at him, worried now, wondering if he would disapprove. "I didn't feel I had much choice, but you have to believe me I wouldn't have done it if I thought there was any danger of him returning here before they leave. Even if he did I don't think he would say anything to anyone about it or do anything. I hope I've judged his character well enough. I didn't tell him everything or any more than I had to. Please don't be angry with me, Gandalf."

He sighed, "Ai, Pen-ii, my child. I am not angry. I well understand why you did so. It was why I had Elrond and Aragorn accompany me to the halls and give you some privacy: I had an inkling of what you might feel forced to do. And no, Halbarad will not return before they leave nor would he do anything, I do not think, in response to whatever it is you have told him. Just like the others who know of your situation, he understands the importance of not acting upon anything you may know or reveal even by accident..."

Penny interrupted him, "But I haven't, Mithrandir! This is the first time, I promise! Only once or twice with you, perhaps, and none of those were too serious I do not think. You must believe me..."

He held up his hand. "Please, Pen-ii, you misunderstand me. I did not say you had let anything slip. I merely meant that, even if you did, none of those whom you might mention anything to would act upon it, no matter how great the temptation. They understand that the potential victory we may gain hangs on too thin a thread for anything to be changed without potentially dire consequences. They did not need me to tell them that. Yes, you have judged Halbarad right. Even so, Pen-ii, you must be careful, always, what you say and to whom. I know you do not need me to tell you that."

"I know, Mithrandir. Le hannon. It means a lot to me that you understand and aren't upset with me."

He laughed softly. "Ah, my child. You carry a great burden. One that many could not cope with. You have done admirably well, do you not realise that? It has been noted and commented on. Many would not be able to help themselves and would simply talk and talk. At least you understand the importance of your silence."

Penny flushed slightly, unsure of what to say or how to take this. She wondered who had said this about her. She wanted to feel pleased, honoured, but felt she really did not deserve it. She was only doing what had to be done. Not only that, it was taking all her willpower to do it.

Two days after Halbarad left, Elladan and Elrohir finally returned. When Penny saw them at supper that day she knew that it would not be long now.

She decided to take the opportunity to make the most of Gandalf while he was still around. She was worried the 'transmission' of thoughts might be tiring for him, and did not want to over tax him, but at the same time it was going to be some time before her Sindarin was even vaguely reasonable enough for her to conduct a decent conversation. She spoke to him about it, explaining she would like to learn a little from various people before he went. He reassured her that, while it was tiring if prolonged, she was welcome to make use of his ability to communicate and translate for her while he was still here. She insisted that he tell her if he began to tire or needed to be elsewhere and he assured her he would.

So in the next few days she, accompanied by Gandalf, listened to Arwen and Erestor describe Lothlorien, got Aragorn to speak to her a little of his travels in the south and his time in both Rohan and Gondor, as well as Elrond to tell her something of Gil-galad.

One of the most extraordinary hours was with Glorfindel who Penny found ambling along in a corridor one day. She managed to convey that she wanted to talk to him but needed to find Mithrandir first. Fortunately Gandalf was in a nearby antechamber chattering with Merry, Frodo and various elves.

"Mithrandir are you busy? If not, would you mind asking Glorfindel if he's busy, and could I talk with him for a little bit?"

The question asked, Glorfindel made it clear he was free till dinner, which would be in an hour or so. He turned to Penny, a questioning smile on his lips, wondering what all this was about.

"Glorfindel, would you mind telling me a little about Gondolin?"

It was a simple request, one which Glorfindel had not been asked in a very long time. It pleased him enormously that he would be able to relate something so easily and yet give Penny such obvious delight.

He led her out into the corridor, down a few passageways, until they came to a large mural opposite which was a bench. It was of Gondolin.

"This is the best picture in Imladris of Gondolin, Pen-ii. The most accurate. Painted by Celebrimbor himself."

Penny's chin fell on the floor. "Celebrimbor!" She was in awe.

Then Glorfindel proceeded to point out buildings to her within the city's walls: Turgon's tower, the Hall of the Gods, the Halls of Marriage, Tuor's house and much more. Penny had tears in her eyes as he spoke with obvious passion and delight about ceremonies, feasts and daily life. He spoke movingly of Ecthelion, Tuor and Turgon, of the city's beauty and that of its elves.

"It was a great loss." It was all she could think of to say and it seemed woefully inadequate.

Glorfindel nodded, his eyes suddenly wet with tears. "Yes indeed, Pen-ii."

Later that evening, in one of the smaller antechambers, Penny found herself sitting with Gandalf and Elrond. Arwen, Aragorn and Elladan were to one side, chattering and laughing. Glorfindel and Erestor were deep in conversation with Legolas. Boromir, Elrohir, Frodo and Gloín were crowded round the fire listening as Boromir related some tale of battle and heroic deeds from the south.

Gandalf was telling Penny of places he had visited, things he had seen, with Elrond adding comments now and then. Elrohir moved over to join Legolas, since Boromir, Frodo and Gloín had left to go the Hall of Fire and find the rest of the hobbits and dwarves.

Penny took the opportunity of a pause in Gandalf's descriptions to say quietly, "Gandalf?"

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"How did I get here? Do you have any idea?"

There was a silence. Elrond exchanged a surprised glance with Gandalf as her question was translated.

"It's just it worries me, you know. I try not to think about it too much, really, because it's kind of scarey to think about." She could feel her voice cracking, was vaguely aware that conversation in the room had quietened as Gandalf had translated. Arwen and Elladan, standing close by, had seen the expression on their father's face. In turn, Erestor noticed them fall silent and had looked to see the cause. Then, one by one, those with him quietened and also turned to see what was going on.

"I don't know how I got here. I... I could just as easily disappear in an instant too, couldn't I?" Gandalf translated, but before he had even finished she continued, "Alternatively I could be stuck here, couldn't I? I might... I might never go home."

She looked at Gandalf desperately. He was the only one who might be able to give her any answer, any clue as to what had happened to her. There was silence in the room as Gandalf relayed her words to Elrond, all eyes turned to her now, though she did not notice it.

"I cannot answer you, Pen-ii. You are a mystery to me, to all of us. If I knew I would tell you, would have already done so."

Penny nodded, a tear rolling down her cheek. "Thing is, Mithrandir..." Her voice fell to a near whisper, "I'm not sure I want to go home. There is little for me there. Here... here I find I'm more free to be myself than I've ever been in my life. I don't know if that makes any sense to you at all." She could not look at him, struggling to stop the tears from falling. "But how can I settle here, how can I make a life for myself if I know that, at any moment, I might suddenly find myself back in London, back in my flat, with umpteen messages on my answer-phone from mum wondering where the hell I've been all this time?"

Gandalf was a little baffled by this last bit and looked bemused. Penny smiled sadly, "Oh, you know mothers. Always fussing. 'When are you going to meet a nice man, Penny?' 'When am I going to have grandkids, Penny?' 'Why don't you get out more, Penny?'" She sighed as another tear brimmed over onto her cheek. "She means well, but she drives me crazy."

"Do you not miss her?" He asked it very gently, not wishing to distress her.

Penny felt the lump in her throat. She could not speak, but nodded and burst into tears.

Arwen, laying a hand on Aragorn's arm as she stood, came over to her, crouching beside her and holding her as she sobbed. The faces in the room were filled with a sadness and an empathy for Penny's fate. There was nothing they could do for her, nor could they begin to imagine what this must be like for her: to live on a knife edge, never knowing if you were here for good, or if not, when you might suddenly be pulled out of it all. Her utter loneliness and alone-ness struck them very forcefully in that moment. A few had tears in their eyes.

A day or two later, when Anduril was finished, Aragorn showed it to Penny since he knew now that she had an interest. He beckoned her into an antechamber as she walked past the open door one evening. Gandalf was there, with Elrond, Elrohir and Erestor, all of them sharing a post-dinner flagon of wine.

She dared not bring her hand anywhere near it, not after her experience with Halbarad's sword, but she admired it as closely as she dared as he pulled it from the scabbard hanging from his belt and laid it on the table for her to see.

It gleamed in the torchlight. She could see the pattern within the blade of the runes and, in their centre, the seven stars between sun and moon. She felt a lump in her throat.

She looked at Aragorn. "Can I ask you to take it to the window, into the moonlight?" Aragorn looked bemused but followed her request.

As she followed and watched she could see the gleam in the blade change: it did indeed gleam with a cold light, almost as if from within. "This is so amazing," she murmured.

"What is it, Pen-ii?" Gandalf was asking.

She turned to him. "It was said that in the light of the sun it gleamed red and it gleamed cold in the moon: Anduril, the reforged blade of Narsil."

Aragorn gasped. "I can never get used to this. I only publicly named it 'Anduril' this very afternoon." He shook his head, smiling gently. "Pen- ii, you are strange indeed."

"When do you leave?"

Her question took them all a little by surprise.

"Well," she continued, "Elladan and Elrohir arrived a few days ago, didn't they? They are the last of the scouts. They came over the Misty Moutains and found nothing, isn't that so?"

Elrohir, Elrond, Erestor and Aragorn exchanged a look as Gandalf translated.

"You know, it doesn't matter how many times it happens, I still can not get used to it." Erestor was shaking his head with an expression of bewilderment and astonishment.

"Just out of interest, Pen-ii, what do you know of what the scouts found?" Elrond's voice was calm as he spoke, his eyes full of quiet curiosity.

"Eight dead horses and a cloak."

There was nothing else they could do but laugh softly at her accurate response. It was so bizarre and utterly strange.

"And what do you say happened to the Nazgul?"

"What do _you_ say, Lord Elrond?"

Elrond smiled and nodded, "Well answered, Pen-ii. Well, after much discussion we say they have fled to Mordor, without raiment or steeds. I will not ask you to confirm or deny that, though I do not doubt you could tell me if we are correct. In answer to your question: they leave in four days."

She nodded, feeling her throat tighten very suddenly. They could see the tears in her eyes. "Then you have chosen the last two, haven't you?"

Elrond nodded but said nothing.

Penny realised they were waiting for her to tell them herself. "Razanur and Kalimac." She did not give them time to answer her. "If you will excuse me," she muttered hoarsely, bowing a little and leaving the room.

Aragorn had moved to follow her but Gandalf held him back. "Leave her. We know this is important work we do. So does she. It begins. It all begins as of four days from now and everything then hangs in the balance and by a mere thread. She is as aware of this as we are. Leave her to her thoughts. We have much to think on ourselves."

She found one of her favourite spots in the gardens: a small clearing with a fountain in its middle and benches and flowerbeds (now bereft of flowers in late December) round about it. She let herself weep freely for once. Better to get it out in private than be going off on one in public.

Wow. She had known it was coming, that it would be soon, but even so.

She would miss them all, the hobbits especially, and Gandalf. He had been her lifeline. She would be utterly bereft in terms of communication without him.

She could not really take in the sheer enormity of what lay before them. She knew that within a matter of a month they would have faced one of the greatest evils in Middle-earth after Sauron himself and Gandalf would be dead. Her brain just refused to process it. Balrogs _existed_. There was one, living and breathing, and under the mountains she could see all round her right_ now_.

Things like that she still could not accept. She would not really accept orcs till she met one face to face, she knew. She also sincerely hoped she would never be in that position.

It was still unbelievable: that Mordor was REAL, that Saruman and Uruk-hai were REAL, that Sauron was...

No, she knew he was real. She remembered once more that terror she had felt, if only briefly, when Gandalf had mentioned him to her the day the scouts had left.

Even as she remembered it, it hit home: how serious and huge this was. This was no game, no story, no fantasy. People's lives were at stake. It was a case of fight or be consumed by something so horrific, so terrifying that you could not even imagine it in your worst nightmare. The courage of the Nine Walkers struck her in that moment also. They had pledged to walk straight into the centre, the source of that horror.

Her brain reeled.

Since it was generally known in Imladris that the nine were leaving, though perhaps not all knew the exact nature of their mission (though it was obviously very serious indeed given who would be accompanying the hobbits), it was easy enough for Penny to join in with the goodbyes.

Tea every afternoon became a near ritual now. Gimli was there every day for it as well as Gandalf, as ever, but now Aragorn, Boromir or even Legolas would make an occasional appearance. Given what Legolas thought of tea it all spoke volumes. Thankfully these last three never all came together on the same day so Penny did not have to deal with being in a room where the only other people there were the entire Fellowship and Bilbo. She really would NOT have been able to cope with that, she did not think.

However there was once, a day or two before the Fellowship were due to leave, when she was walking along a corridor past an open door and heard the sound of metal clanging against metal. Turning her head at the noise she saw, inside the room, Legolas leaning against the wall, his arms folded, one knee bent with his foot against the wall as he watched something that was happening inside the room. He looked up, saw her, smiled and beckoned her to enter.

She caught her breath as she saw Aragorn and Boromir sparring with Merry and Sam. Tables, benches and chairs had been pushed to the sides to make space and Pippin and Frodo were to one side, sat on top of a table, their legs dangling, watching and obviously waiting their turn. Both Aragorn and Boromir had their tunics off and had rolled up the sleeves of their undertunics to the elbow. The hobbits were in leggings and shirts only – their waistcoats and jackets in a pile beside Pippin and Frodo.

Penny could feel her breathing quicken slightly. It was the first time she had really been reminded of their ability as fighters, as warriors. She thought of Boromir's stand in Osgiliath before he left Gondor to head north; she considered what Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas would achieve just at Helm's Deep, let alone afterwards.

Penny was not sure she could cope with this. She thought of the wolves they would face only a few days after they had left Rivendell, the orcs in Mordor, even worse on the Pelennor and at the Black Gate. With the skills he was being taught, Merry would stab the Witchking himself.

As she watched the blades clash, thrusts parried, the concentration and effort being shown by the four sparring in the middle of this large room she felt her heart in her throat.

She cast a glance at Legolas. The expression on her face told him he had done the wrong thing inviting her to come and watch. He looked concerned suddenly and straightened up. She came him a quick smile and briskly turned to go out of the door only to near crash straight into Gandalf and Gimli coming in.

For the briefest of moments, then, she was alone with the entire Fellowship.

Something inside her brain screamed at her to run. Instead she smiled as best she could to Gandalf and Gimli, greeting them both, and then walked past them into the corridor.

Gandalf, saying something to Gimli, followed her out, Legolas behind him, and quickly caught her up.

"Pen-ii? Are you quite well?"

She turned to him as he touched her arm, could see Legolas standing beside him looking at her anxiously. She did her best to smile, though they could see she was distressed.

"I'm fine. Really. It's just I forget sometimes... forget how real it is, forget you are all warriors and trained in fighting. I am not used to it even in my time, let alone here when I know your stories and what you will face. Forgive me, I didn't mean to worry you. Just a little too much to cope with, that was all. Don't let me disturb you. Carry on." Before they could respond she pulled away from them, walked briskly down the corridor and turned a corner.

Gandalf threw a look at Legolas, his eyebrow raised. "What was she doing there, Legolas?"

"My fault, I fear. I realise my mistake now. She was passing, heard the noise and glanced toward it. I caught her eye and beckoned for her to come and see what the noise was about. I did not think it through, Mithrandir, forgive me. I forget she is unused to such things."

"Not only that, Legolas. We do not know what we face ahead of us but she certainly does. It may be yet that the kuduk will be in dire need of the skills they are learning now. There will be war and battles ahead. Of that I have no doubt. Seeing us, or some of us, practising or even learning fighting skills would only remind her all the more of what we will witness and be party to." He shook his head, still looking in the direction she had disappeared in. "She should not have seen it, Legolas, but no matter. What's done is done." With that the two returned to the sparring practise.

At last the day came. She knew it was today. She had been counting. She wanted to say something, anything, if only to Gandalf, but knew there was nothing she could say without giving something away so in the end she said nothing at all. She could not bear to look at Boromir. She gave up all pretence in that regard.

The hobbits had sensed her sadness at their imminent departure and, looking on her as their 'fellow stranger in Rivendell', did their best to try and amuse her. Pippin was busy pulling faces at her all the way through lunch till she could not help herself but start giggling. Pippin beamed, pleased he had got such a response from her.

That afternoon at tea Gandalf translated as Merry said, "You know, Pen-ii, you must look after Bilba when we are gone. He will be glad of the company and we know he will be in good hands with you."

Bilbo muttered something about not needing looking after and that he had managed perfectly well for many years in Imladris without any help or interference, "thank you very much you cheeky young kuduk."

For her part Penny blushed. She knew very well Merry was saying it as much to cheer her up and possibly Bilbo. Given Bilbo was entirely surrounded by elves he did not need her in the least. She suspected, rightly, that this was in fact a way of getting Bilbo to look out for _her_ once they were gone, and not the other way round.

She smiled at Merry. "I will do my best, if he will let me, Kali. With the elves of Imladris at his beck and call I hardly think he will have need of me, though."

Frodo's eyes twinkled slightly. "True enough, Lady Pen-ii, but Bilba has insisted on taking over from my breakfast Sindarin duties with you." He grinned as they laughed.

As supper neared and the inevitable departure neared also, Penny could feel her stomach tightening into knots. She could not really eat, just pushed the little food on her plate round and round a few times. Aragorn, Gandalf and Legolas, all sat near her, could see it and exchanged a glance, though they said nothing.

In the Hall of Fire she watched as groups came forward and said their farewells. The Fellowship were dressed and ready for the off: cloaked and booted, their weapons at their sides. She could see the hobbits, Bilbo in particular, were near to tears as they said goodbye to each other. Similarly moving were the fond farewells between Gimli and the dwarves and Legolas and the two Mirkwood elves who had accompanied him.

At first Penny held back, unable to keep the emotions welling within her under control. Then Gandalf, looking up and catching her eye, beckoned her over with a kind smile. She took a deep breath, stepped over to them, and found herself in close proximity to and entirely surrounded by the Fellowship.

Gandalf stood beside Penny as Gimli and then the hobbits took their farewells of her. Gimli was most courteous, as ever, and bowed low. The hobbits, each in turn insisted on kissing her hand. Sam said that he wanted her to look after the cabbages he had planted, while Merry and Pippin simply grinned at her and said they envied her staying here amongst the elves and not to take too much notice of Bilbo.

"He is not nearly as cantankerous and fussy as he seems, Pen-ii, and he has taken to you very well, you know. Do keep him company for afternoon tea every day, won't you?"

She promised them she would and could not keep the tears from filling her eyes. Dear God, they had no idea what lay ahead of them. She was trying not to think about it, refusing to let it all overwhelm her, but in truth she felt very much like she had done when she had first arrived in Rivendell. The panic, fear and distress was rising with every passing second, though she was doing her best to smother it.

Of the four only Frodo showed some sign of what lay ahead. As he said his farewell to her, insisting that, when next they met, he would expect her to be fluent in Sindarin, she could not help but notice his face seemed a little drawn, his expression a little stiff, and his eyes a little anxious.

She hesitated then murmured, "May Elbereth protect you, Maura."

He stopped, looking at her for a moment with an intensity that startled her, though it passed as quickly as it had arrived. He smiled.

"Le hannon, Pen-ii."

As the hobbits moved away she muttered to Gandalf, "I need a little air. I will be in the corridor for a few moments, this is becoming difficult for me."

"I understand, Pen-ii, but you cannot just yet." Legolas and Aragorn had turned to her now.

Since the dwarves, hobbits and Boromir were occupied, the four took the opportunity to step to one side a little so they could talk more privately. Both Aragorn and Legolas kissed Penny's hand and bowed.

"I trust things may be a little easier for you once we have left, Lady Pen- ii," Legolas was saying quietly.

"Yes and no, Lord Legolas. Yes and no." He nodded.

Aragorn spoke, "You will be well looked after her, have no fear. Lady Arwen has assured me of it. Lord Elrond himself, also."

She nodded, "I know, Lord Aragorn, you do not need to tell me. I've already been well looked after. Far more than I deserve I feel."

There was a brief silence till Penny said, "I do not know what to say. I want to say so much. I cannot find the words that would be suitable given what I know lies ahead of you. Nothing I can think of saying won't give something away. Goheno nin. May Elbereth protect you all, and Eru guide you."

They smiled then. "That was well said, Pen-ii. That will do. It was more than enough," Aragorn assured her and the other two agreed.

"I... I will be thinking about you all. Please forgive me..." She suddenly looked at the three of them very earnestly, her voice dipping so it was barely audible. "Goheno nin. Saes. There are many things I would have warned you about, that it has taken all my strength of will to not tell you about. Please don't think badly of me when things happen that, if I had told you, you might have been able to prevent."

There was silence for a moment. It was Aragorn who spoke, his voice quiet and serious.

"We understand, Pen-ii. We do not blame you, nor will we."

"Le hannon, Aragorn." She barely managed to say it her throat was so tight, her voice so shaky with distress.

Legolas and Aragorn murmured "navaer", bowed slightly, and left her with Gandalf.

There then came the moment she had dreaded for two months. Boromir. He had made his farewells of most of those in the room, spending longest with the dwarves, perhaps, of all those there to see them off. Now he stepped towards Penny. His face was impassive, his eyes kind and gentle. He kissed her hand and wished her well.

"I hope, perhaps, I might see you in Minas Tirith one day, my lady. It is a fair city and it would please me to be able to show you its beauty."

Her throat tightened. Her eyes filled. She had to bite her lips to stop them from quivering or a sob escaping them. She nodded dumbly, utterly bereft of speech at the thought that he would, in fact, never see Gondor again.

He smiled, sadly, on seeing the tears in her eyes. He left her, not wishing to distress her more.

She looked at Gandalf, pleading, barely controlling herself, but begging with him that she could leave. He nodded, well understanding what she wanted. He held a wizened hand to her face.

/_Ai, my child. It is hard, is it not? You have done well this evening. I know this must be difficult for you. Do not think I do not sense a lot of what you are going through. You have told me much you did not think to tell me at all. But, come, that is of no importance now. What is to be shall be. It is written_./

Her tears were falling, slowly and silently, as his voice rumbled in her head. He smiled, sadly but kindly.

/_Take care of yourself, Pen-ii. As Aragorn said you will be well looked after and perhaps in no safer place through all this than here in Imladris. I shall see you again. You know it, and so do I. And do not worry, Pen- ii: if we succeed, any loss will have been worth it. They would all tell you this themselves, even were it their own lives that they would lose. Know this and be comforted a little. When you can, when you have the Sindarin, talk to Elrond, tell him what you know. It will help you to share the burden with him._/

She nodded, still too distraught to be able to speak.

He spoke openly now. "I must go, Pen-ii. The road is a long one."

Her voice cracked and trembled as she spoke, "Navaer, Mithrandir."

"Navaer, Pen-ii."

Then, as he turned to go, on a sudden impulse, she hugged him; threw her arms about his neck and whispered, "Thank you, Gandalf. Thank you for everything. I don't know what I would have done without you. Gone mad, I suspect. I shall miss you."

There were raised eyebrows from those who saw this, not least from Elrond and Aragorn. Only the hobbits ever had the sheer audacity to treat Mithrandir like this.

Gandalf, though, laughed softly and, as Penny pulled away from him, he gently kissed her brow. "You are very welcome, my dear."

She watched, the tears falling silently still, as, one by one, they left the Hall of Fire and made their way to the main entrance of the halls, Gandalf and Elrond being the last to leave.


	25. To Balrog or Not To Balrog

**Chapter 25** - _"To Balrog or Not To Balrog"_

It was all very odd in the event, Penny decided afterwards, almost like a dream.

Elrohir had taken her to join everyone heading outside to see the Nine Walkers leave. The entirety of Imladris had been there, standing quietly among the trees, watching the Fellowship as they walked down to the gate and then out towards their fates.

Penny wept quietly and long as she saw Boromir pass her by, unable to quite believe that she would never see him again, that she knew what lay ahead of him, lay ahead of them all. In so many ways none of it felt real, and yet it so patently was it made her ache inside.

She went straight to her chambers, quiet and tense, almost numb in some ways. Elrohir and Elladan, who had been standing nearby, exchanged a glance as she had murmured her apologies and scurried off into the night. It was hard for all of them to know the terrible danger their friends and loved ones were walking into, and it seemed strange but entirely understandable that this woman, whom they barely knew, should find it just as difficult as they, if not more so.

Afterwards she was quiet and withdrawn, even though she fought against it. She knew there was nothing she could do or could have done, that indeed if she had tried she would have put the downfall of Sauron himself in jeopardy, but she still felt wracked with guilt.

She grieved for Boromir, too, though she felt it to be utterly ridiculous given she barely knew the man. She could not get him out of her head. Gandalf's fall, while terrible, did not trouble her so much precisely because she knew he would return, even though the Fellowship would miss his guidance and leadership terribly.

No, it was Boromir that held her in her melancholy.

For the next few days, since she still was not riding, Arwen would come to meet her after Erestor's lesson each day and take her to a quiet antechamber where they could spend the morning alone. Penny could not communicate, could not unburden the pain and distress she felt, but to be able to sit with someone with whom it did not matter if she lost herself in her thoughts, and with whom she did not need to pretend to be more indifferent to the Fellowship's departure, was a comfort in some ways. She did not let herself collapse completely in Arwen's presence, though, well aware that the man she loved was among the Nine and to have Penny weeping and wailing at his possible fate would not be helpful, to say the least.

When not with Arwen, she would walk or garden: anything to be alone with her thoughts and not having to put a brave, false face on.

She was aware that a few times those who knew about her situation clearly tried to ask her if everything was alright. She even suspected that Elrond might already be waiting for her to tell him more now the Fellowship had left, but she had no Gandalf now: she was back to the odd word and hand gestures for communication. She thanked them for their kindness but could say no more. Not that she wanted to straight away, even if she could have done.

After a few days, she felt she was better able to control herself and behave more normally in front of Mireth, Eleniel, Celebdor or Lindir and the others. She was calculating in her head now, trying to remember what happened when, and she would study the calendar on Erestor's wall, much to his interest. Even though she was better able to cover it, her thoughts were constantly with the Fellowship and what they may be facing right at that moment, or what they would face in a week, a fortnight, a month or more. It would not leave her and, especially when alone with those who knew her situation, it left its mark upon her.

From that first following morning, though, Bilbo became a new friend. They had got to know each other relatively well in the past two months, but up till now she had been closer to the younger hobbits since she saw them more often.

Bilbo was there at breakfast that morning, and at every subsequent breakfast afterwards, just as he had promised Frodo he would be: testing her on her Sindarin vocabulary and exercises for the day's lesson with Erestor. He had made tea in a small pot and they shared it between them. She made it clear that tomorrow she would make it.

Bilbo shook his head. "No, Pen-ii. I will make tea for breakfast. You make it for afternoon tea. You promised Kali you would join me every day, and I hope you will be able to continue to do so." He spoke slowly and carefully, laying special emphasis on the words that would give the meaning of what he was saying to her, or else words he knew she knew already.

She nodded, pleased to have someone with whom to share the burden of the hobbits' departure a little, and so every afternoon they would meet in the kitchen, load up a tray with a cake or two and a pot of tea and commandeer the same small antechamber together.

Often someone would come and join them. Elladan and Elrohir were regular visitors as well as Erestor. Penny would listen to the chatter, or perhaps continue her sewing. Occasionally Bilbo would have a book with him and would read bits out to her: poetry, from what she could tell, or ballads. He would then try and explain the stories in simpler language for her. If Erestor was there he would join in, and she would have both of them talking to her at once. Some of it she got, most of it was completely over her head, but she was touched nevertheless that Bilbo was making such an effort with her. She suspected it helped him to keep his mind off things a little too.

Bilbo was quiet, like her, that morning, and for the following days. In fact, all of Imladris seemed subdued for many days after the Fellowship left. Everyone was aware something momentous had happened, and the entire place was filled with an underlying tension as if now waiting for something to occur as a consequence. Penny was aware of it – of how much more quiet things were than previously – and it made everything worse: they were waiting for they knew not what, whereas she was waiting for things she knew all too well.

"I am worried about her," Erestor was saying.

Elrond had come to see him in his study. Elladan and Elrohir had left that morning to patrol the outskirts of Elrond's realm once more, and Glorfindel would be leaving soon also. All three had expressed some concern at Penny's demeanour since she seemed so quiet and troubled, particularly when she was alone with any of them and could let her guard down. Erestor felt he was speaking for all four of them as he spoke to Lord Elrond.

Elrond nodded. "I know. Elladan spoke to me about it before he left, also. Mithrandir said he would tell her to speak to me but she has yet to do so."

"She may not feel she has the Sindarin to do so."

"Does she have the Sindarin to do so?"

"Well, no, but she could make herself relatively understood, I am sure."

Elrond sat silently in thought for a moment. "Erestor, do you think we should force things a little? Perhaps if you, I and Arwen were to question her?"

Erestor's face clouded a little. "I am not so sure, Elrond. It may upset her more. Do not forget we do not know what it is she knows. If it is dark indeed, then..." He trailed off.

Elrond sighed. "I feel we must do something. She needs help. It is only communication, or the lack thereof, that is the main barrier here. Mithrandir was a great support to her."

"Yes, I think she misses his presence greatly."

Elrond nodded, murmuring his agreement. He considered the matter, then said, "Well, we shall leave things be for a while, but if she cannot shake off her distress I think we shall have to do something. It is fairly apparent her thoughts are constantly with the Nine Walkers and whatever they may be facing, though she covers it well enough in front of others, and even to have to do that – to have to put on a brave face, as it were – must be just as wearing as the knowledge itself. It can be difficult enough for the Eldar or Gandalf to have the kind of knowledge she bears. She is a mortal, she is young and entirely unused to it. It may break her if she tries to struggle with this all by herself. Mithrandir could see that, and he was right."

So they left her for a little while longer, but they kept an eye on her all the same since the strain was beginning to show.

Halbarad noticed it too when he returned nearly three weeks after the Fellowship had left. He could see the sadness in her eyes, her stillness and quietness. Given what she had told him as he had left, he could well understand why now.

She was pleased to see him, though. With Gandalf gone, even though she could not communicate well to Halbarad he was a great comfort for her just by being around.

He had arrived in the afternoon while she was sitting with Mireth in an antechamber, sewing. As soon as he had bathed, he went looking for her. Elrond had spoken to him, told him something of his, Erestor's and Arwen's concern, and had wondered if Halbarad might be able to talk to her.

Even if he had not spoken to Elrond, though, Halbarad wanted to see her, see how she was coping. What she had shared with him that day when he had left had preyed on his mind the entire time he had been away. He still could not quite take in the fact that Boromir would die, but even putting that aside, the more he considered, or tried to imagine, what it must be like for her to have such knowledge, the more he worried about her. He had said as much to Elrond and he had seen Elrond shared exactly those same concerns.

"She is coping very well, Halbarad, make no mistake. We are all thinking of them, we are all quiet and subdued, so in some sense her behaviour is not unusual. Added to which it is clear to all that she had become close to Gandalf, and the kuduk, while they were here, so her distractedness will seem entirely understandable to all here." Elrond paused for a moment before continuing. "No, it is when she is alone with those of us who know her story, Halbarad, when she can relax a little and not worry so much about covering her feelings. You can see it in her. I can feel it very strongly in her, as can Arwen too. It is not fear or worry as much as utter preoccupation, deep distress and despair."

Halbarad nodded, his face serious. "I have thought much about this, Elrond, and it has occurred to me, as I imagine it has to you, that she knows some aspects of this in detail."

"Yes, indeed."

"You remember the detail she had of the Council? How she knew who had said what to whom? How she knew even the smallest details of the kuduk, Bilba's party and their travels to Bree? If she knows the story of the Nine Walkers in that much detail..." He broke off, raising his head to look straight at Elrond as he continued, "Then she will indeed be living near enough every day with them."

Elrond nodded, his expression grave. "I am well aware of this. As are Erestor and Arwen. Glorfindel, Elladan and Elrohir were also saying the same thing before they left."

"Yes, I met Elrohir. We discussed it a little."

"Oh, yes?"

"Only because I asked of news, if they had left. When he said they had, I asked how Pen-ii was doing. He told me."

"I see. Well, then, you are already aware of our concerns. I can see you share them also."

Yes, he did indeed. He did not say to Elrond that she had told him something of what she knew. She would no doubt tell Elrond herself when she felt the time was right. He knew that she had told him only because he had been so angered by her behaviour. She had told him only to correct his view of her. Otherwise she would have never told him at all. Of that much, Halbarad was certain.

He was nearing the antechamber door when it opened and Mireth stepped through it, holding a sewing basket under one arm. She looked up on seeing him and smiled.

"Well met, Halbarad. It is good to see you back once more."

"Well met, Lady Mireth, and I thank you it is good be back in Imladris once more. Is Lady Pen-ii in there with you?"

"She is indeed, but you must excuse me; I cannot stay, I have to go and meet Celebdor."

Halbarad flashed her a knowing grin. "Ah, yes. Of course, Mireth."

She blushed a little, smiled and hurried off. Halbarad, chuckling, pushed the door open.

Penny was sitting at a window seat, her sewing in her lap, staring out at the light dusting of snow on the ground. She had a shawl about her shoulders, and Halbarad could see part of her face since she was sitting sideways on to him. Whatever mask she may have worn for Mireth, or possibly even with Elrond, Erestor or Arwen, there was none there now as he looked at her. He could see her brow furrowed, the skin round her eyes tight, her jaw set as she stared off into the distance as if utterly lost in her thoughts. He recognised that look: she had worn it all the way to Imladris.

Halbarad, one hand on the door handle still, sighed.

She started a little, turned and, as a smile spread across her face, he could see that the mask was up suddenly.

"Halbarad! God, I'm pleased to see you! Mae govannen."

He grinned at her. "Mae govannen, Pen-ii."

He stood there for a moment, not moving, as they looked at each other, both suddenly thinking of the last time they had seen each other and the information that had passed between them.

"Pen-ii..." Halbarad began.

He could get no further because she was standing and walking quickly across to him, throwing her arms about his waist and hugging him, pressing her cheek against his chest.

He laughed slightly in surprise and was still smiling as she pulled back from him a little and looked up at him with a decidedly sheepish expression on her face. "Forgive me, Halbarad. I am pleased I see you," she said faltering in Sindarin. "After that I talked. When you left, the day you left. You understand my story. You understand."

He nodded. He did indeed. "I understand very well, Pen-ii, and I am glad you told me." He walked her over to the window seat once more and sat opposite her. He regarded her for a moment. "Pen-ii, how are you? How are you coping with all this?"

She did not understand his questions, but at last she realised what he was asking and smiled at him, patting his knee, "I am well, Halbarad." Then she said in English, "Really, I'm fine. Honestly. It's hard, sure, but I'll cope. I'm fine."

Halbarad could tell what she was saying just by the tone in her voice: trying to convince herself and him and failing completely. He would not press her, though.

They went for a walk then, even though the chill of winter was upon them. They reached a little bench hidden in the trees, and Halbarad indicated for them to sit.

He was worried. Her silence, her entire bearing, reminded him so much of how she had been in that week when they had travelled from Bree to Imladris alone, when he had seen her deteriorate in front of his eyes as she struggled to cope with what she was going through. He had to say something.

"Pen-ii, is everything well? You seem quiet, withdrawn. I am worried for you."

No response.

"You are thinking of them, are you not?"

She did not understand him.

"You. Thinking." He tapped his head. Then said, "The Nine Walkers: Aragorn, kuduk..." He hesitated before saying, "Boromir."

He saw her eyes fill, her gaze then fall to her lap, as she nodded. He took her hand and squeezed it a little. A gasp, a soft sob, and a tear upon her cheek told him of the pain she was feeling. He pulled her to him, holding her gently as she wept quietly.

"Ai, Pen-ii. I cannot know what this must be like for you, nor is there anything I can say to help you." He pulled back from her, holding her by the shoulders as he looked into her eyes, his face serious. "Pen-ii, I will always be your friend. Friend. You understand? You can tell me anything. You, talk, me. I am your friend."

She nodded and smiled gratefully at him, "Le hannon, Halbarad. It means a lot to me. Really, it does. Le hannon."

He returned her smile. "Elrond is worried, you know. Erestor and Lady Arwen also. You need to talk, Pen-ii." She was looking at him, brows furrowed, trying to understand him. "You, talk, Elrond. Mithrandir said to you to talk to Elrond, did he not?"

She looked at him for a moment before nodding slowly, "Yes. Yes, he did. At least if I have understood you, and I think I have. Mithrandir did tell me to talk to Elrond." She looked at Halbarad once more, considering. "You are right, Halbarad. Yes. Yes, I think I have to. I can't do this alone. It's too much. It's overwhelming, really. I can't stop thinking about it. That won't stop, I don't think, even if I do talk to Elrond, but at least then there'll be two of us obsessed by it." She smiled ruefully.

She knew Halbarad would not understand her, but she was grateful to be able to talk to him. Halbarad had been through it all with her, had been there from the very beginning and seen her through the worst patch yet. She did not really feel she could let go even in her own language to Arwen, Elrond or Erestor. She did not want to burden them. She guessed Elrond had spoken to Halbarad, though, and it was clear they were concerned about her.

She nodded. "I will talk Elrond," she said in Sindarin.

Halbarad smiled and nodded. "Good, Pen-ii. You should. I am glad. It is the right thing to do." He paused, wondering how he could make his next question be understood. "Do you want me to be there with you? When you talk to Elrond, do you want me with you?"

She guessed his question and the obvious relief in her face gave him his answer. He smiled once more. "I there with you, Pen-ii," he said, keeping his Sindarin simple for her.

Thank God. She was SO grateful to him.

"Le hannon, Halbarad."

He was smiling kindly at her, happy to be able to help in some small way. He was pleased she would talk, though he was now wondering what on earth he might learn from her.

They walked back to the halls and into supper.

After the meal Penny sat with Eleniel and Lindir in the Hall of Fire. She had noticed Halbarad pull Erestor and Elrond to one side after dinner. She could guess what they were talking about.

Sure enough, she soon noticed Arwen heading towards them. She smiled on seeing Penny look up and beckoned her over to her. Penny joined her and found Arwen leading her out, down corridors, and so to Elrond's study.

Why was it every time one of these conversations took place it was in Elrond's study?

Halbarad, Erestor and Elrond were already there, of course, seated by the fire and with goblets of wine. Penny was given a seat next to Halbarad and Elrond poured her a cup.

"You wish to talk, Pen-ii?" Elrond asked her at last after he had seated himself.

She was not sure she liked the idea of so many people being here, and yet Erestor and Arwen were friends now and had a right to know: as the chief advisor to Elrond and the betrothed to one of the Nine Walkers. She nodded at Elrond, looking a little nervously at the others.

"I don't know where to begin, really." She switched to Sindarin, "Not I talk everything. I talk a little."

Elrond nodded. He had suspected she would relate only that which had already happened or would happen very soon.

Penny suddenly realised it might be useful to have a map. She had no way of asking for this. She looked at Erestor suddenly. "Erestor, do you have a map?"

He looked at her, his brows furrowed but a gentle smile on his face. "What is it you need, Pen-ii?"

She stood, going over to the huge bookcases that lined one entire wall. She patted the spines of a few books as she looked back to the four, watching her intently, "Like this perhaps?" She made a motion with her hands as if spreading something out flat in front of her, tracing her finger along something as she looked at it. Then, as if reading out names, she said, "Imladris, Emyn, Lothlorien, Gwathlo." Then she did a circle motion to take in the entire 'invisible' map in front of her, "Eriador, Arda."

Erestor nodded with a smile. He understood well enough, as did the others. Before he could stand, however, Elrond already had done so and moved to a cabinet behind his desk. He opened the doors revealing a pile of scrolls and rolled parchments. He examined one or two before he found the one he was looking for. He beckoned Penny over to the desk as he unrolled it while the others rose from their seats and came to stand round the desk with her.

Elrond and Erestor weighted down the four corners with a paperweight and three books. Halbarad fetched chairs for Arwen and Penny, though Penny did not sit. Instead she studied the map.

It showed all of Middle-earth from Arnor to Gondor. She quickly picked out Rivendell, Minas Tirith, the Anduin and Lothlorien. She was fascinated, especially at certain towns or villages that were marked on it that she had never heard of or knew existed in Arnor, Rohan and Gondor.

She looked to see if she could read Caradhras, or if the Dimrill Stair or Moria was marked on it. They were not.

She paused for a moment and looked round at them all. Arwen was sitting watching her, a kind smile on her face that belied the intense interest in her gaze. Penny suspected Arwen was hoping for any news of Aragorn she might have. Halbarad was leaning on the desk with both hands, his head turned towards her with an encouraging look on his face. Elrond was sat at his desk chair, a clear view of the map in front of him, sipping his wine and waiting patiently. Erestor was standing next to Arwen, his hand resting on the back of her chair.

She took a deep breath. Where was she going to begin? She was not even sure what they were expecting from her, what they wanted to hear. Gandalf had just said 'tell Elrond what you know,' so she decided to do simply that: relate the story and what would be happening right now.

They watched as she counted on her fingers. It took them a month to get to Lothlorien, they left three weeks ago, so... would they be in Moria yet or not? She could not remember exactly. Then it hit her: they were in Moria right now if not on their way to Lorien, in which case...

Oh God.

Gandalf.

She suddenly looked down, struggling to control the tears she felt well in her eyes, but not quickly enough for them not to have seen her expression change. She had clearly realised something had happened already or was about to: something very distressing indeed. The four exchanged concerned looks.

She recovered herself, took a deep breath to steady herself, and looked at them for a moment, then said in her broken Sindarin, "Nine they walk Lothlorien."

Halbarad and Elrond exchanged a puzzled look.

"Lothlorien?" Erestor asked.

Penny nodded and repeated 'Lothlorien.' "They walked in mountains."

Halbarad looked at Elrond once more, "Was a route decided before they left?"

Elrond shook his head. "No. There was some discussion about it all. Most seemed in favour of the Gap of Rohan." He turned to Penny and pointed on the map, "Not here? Not the Gap of Rohan?"

She shook her head. "No. Saruman, he saw. Birds." She hesitated since she did not know the Sindarin for wolf. "Many... umm... hounds. Not hounds." It was the best she could come up with. She could see they were baffled by this so she repeated it. "Hounds... not hounds. Similar."

Halbarad and Erestor looked at each other. "Do you think she means wolves? They have been gathering in great numbers, as you know," Halbarad was asking.

Erestor was already at the bookshelves scanning for something. Finally he found what he was looking for, pulled a tome from the shelves and turned the pages. Eventually he came back to the desk and pointed at a finely detailed ink painting of a wolf. "Do you mean this, Pen-ii?"

She nodded. Erestor said "draug" two or three times till she repeated it.

Ever the teacher.

"Many wolf. Birds. Saruman he saw. Orthanc not good. Not they walked here," and she pointed at the Gap of Rohan. They nodded. They understood.

"Mithrandir he talked Moria." There was a gasp at this and, again, exchanged glances. Once more Halbarad confirmed what she had said. Penny nodded and repeated 'Moria' then continued, looking at Arwen as she did so, "Aragorn he talked 'no.' He talked Caradhras."

More nods at this, though Halbarad looked a little concerned. "That would have been a difficult road at this time of year," he said quietly. The others looked at him.

"Any road would have been a difficult one. They knew that even before they left, Halbarad," Elrond replied levelly. "Continue, Pen-ii."

"Nine they walk up Caradhras. Big snow Caradhras. Big big snow." She said 'kuduk' and 'edain' and then shivered. They nodded. "Mithrandir he talked Moria again. Aragorn he talked no again. Hobbits cold. Big cold. Cannot walk on, forwards. They walk down Caradhras. Many wolf. No path, no other path. They walk... Moria."

There were gasps and murmurs now.

"Are you saying they went through Moria, Pen-ii?" Elrond could barely believe it.

She nodded, saying, "Nine they walk down Caradhras. They walked Moria. They went in, inside Moria."

They could see the expression on her face as she said it, knew that she knew well enough that that was no place anyone would willingly go. If she knew this from her stories, then it meant that they had indeed met evils there. Suddenly the weight of her knowledge revealed itself, even before she continued further.

Halbarad was shaking his head in disbelief. "Moria! What on earth possessed them to go there? I can not believe Mithrandir was advising them to do so."

Arwen's voice was quiet. "They would not have done so if they had any other choice, Halbarad. You know that. We all do."

Penny was using her hands, indicating on the desk a spot and saying, "Door Moria." They watched as she said 'stream' and traced a line from the door. Elrond nodded. "She means the..."

Penny then placed her hand on its side, across the line of the 'stream' she had traced on the desk. Then, pointing behind it, between it and the 'position' of Moria's door she said, "Big water. Big big water ...umm ...lake. Lake here."

There was a little confusion at this since there was no 'big water' or 'lake' in front of Moria's Western gate. She repeated her action a few times till they simply had to accept what she was saying: that the flow of water had been stopped somehow and there was a body of water where she was saying it was.

She did not know the word for 'monster.' "In water..." She stopped. They could tell she was searching for a word. She looked at Erestor. "Not I know word," she said. He nodded.

So there was something in the water. They were looking at her intently now.

"In water animal," she repeated and then she made a grabbing motion and said 'Maura.' "Animal," grab motion, "hold Maura."

Elrond had his forehead in one hand, Erestor's grip on the back of the chair was tight and Halbarad was not looking at her. They could not fully understand but they all realised the significance of Frodo being the target of this whatever-it-was. Only Arwen kept her gaze on Penny, her face betraying nothing.

"Ban," Penny said while making cutting motions. "Not knife... err.."

"Sword?"

"Yes, Halbarad. I thank you. Sword. Ban sword, he cut in water animal."

Halbarad nodded.

"Nine they ran inside Moria door. In water animal break door. Nine not out Moria. Not," she made a turning motion as if to come back the other way.

Halbarad said quietly, "They were trapped. They had no choice but go on."

Faces were pale, jaws tight as they realised what they were listening to. Again Penny paused, looking at them, and they knew from the anxiety now clear in her eyes that what she had told them was not the half of it.

"Three days? Four days?" she was saying, "They walk."

They could see tears in her eyes now. Halbarad was looking at her, never taking his eyes off her, as he suddenly realised she was finding this very difficult. He smiled gently at her and nodded, urging her to continue, that it would be all right, that they could cope with whatever she was going to tell them.

She nodded in reply and said quietly, her voice shaking a little now as the reality of what she was describing hit home to her, "Orcs. Many many orcs in Moria." She glanced up at Halbarad to see he was looking at Elrond, both aghast. "Many," she repeated.

She did not know 'die' or 'tomb,' so decided not to try and tell them about Balin. That could wait for another time.

"In Moria..."

She could feel her throat tightening. She could have no idea how they would take this, only that it would mean so much more to them than to her, would be terrifying and all too real for them.

"In Moria..."

She was like a stuck record, the tears filling her eyes, looking desperately at them. She really was not sure she should tell them this. She looked at Elrond, pleading with him, then at Halbarad, and he could see the fear and uncertainty in her eyes.

"Please, Pen-ii. What is it? 'In Moria' what?" Elrond said quietly, encouragingly.

At last she said in English, "Durin's Bane."

Erestor and Elrond exchanged a stunned look. Had she just tried to say what they thought she had tried to say?

Erestor came round to the other side of Arwen's chair, faced Penny and said, "In Moria there is a great evil, though what it is is unknown. Durin's Bane. Is this what you are saying, Pen-ii? The big evil of Moria?"

Penny repeated the word 'evil,' not understanding it.

"Yes, 'evil'." Halbarad nodded, "Wolf, orc, Sauron, Saruman, Nazgûl, Mordor. Evil. All evil."

Penny nodded, she understood now and repeated 'evil' at them.

Erestor tried again. "In Moria big evil, yes?"

Penny looked at him, turning a little pale, and what he read in her face made him gasp. Shocked, he looked at Elrond who murmured, "May Eru protect them."

Penny could not hold back the tears, though she tried. They spilled silently down her cheeks as she quietly sat in the seat she had not yet used. She really was not sure this was a good idea, but she whispered one word.

"Balrog."

The only sound for several seconds was Arwen's gasp as she clapped her hand to her mouth. All four looked slowly at each other, unable to register what she had just said.

Arwen's face was pale, her eyes wet.

"Elbereth," murmured Halbarad.

"This cannot be," Elrond was saying quietly. "Surely we misheard."

"Pen-ii," Erestor's voice was not as calm as it was normally, "Pen-ii, repeat please."

It was a phrase he used often enough in his lessons, so she understood it. She raised her head and looked him straight in the eye, her voice shaking a little as she repeated, "Balrog, Erestor. Big evil in Moria. Balrog."

Halbarad's mind reeled. The expression on the faces of the three elves spoke volumes: they could barely believe it either.

"Did you know?" he asked Elrond, his voice quiet as he tried to contain his shock.

Elrond shook his head. "We knew it was serious. Obviously so. But not that. No one dreamed it was that." Then he said, looking at Penny as the tears rolled down her face, "And I do not doubt she understands fully the significance of this. She could have stopped them. She could have said something, but she did not. I begin to understand more of what she bears now."

Halbarad thought too of Boromir. He wondered just how much more there was that she knew. Too much, he now suspected, too much that cut too deep. Sweet Elbereth, poor Pen-ii.

"They run. Bridge Khazad-Dhum. Balrog he run..."

Penny stopped herself. A thought had flashed across her head. She did not want to be the one to tell them this, and they would find out soon enough. Word would come. Word would come from Lothlorien telling of Mithrandir's fall (Penny caught a sob in her throat as that thought hit her), saying the Nine Walkers were now Eight and that help was needed. Help that Elrond would send...

She suddenly looked up at Halbarad, and smiled sadly, as a tear slid down her face.

God, this was so damn hard.

She shook her head as she stared at her hands, which were clasped tightly in her lap. "They walk Lothlorien. They walked out of Moria. They walked inside Lothlorien."

She did not look at them. Arwen and Elrond exchanged a glance. Halbarad and Erestor looked at them.

"What is it?" Erestor asked.

"There is something she is not telling us," said Elrond quietly. "I do not know what, but she was about to say something and stopped herself."

"Yes," Arwen nodded. "I felt it too. Very strong."

"Pen-ii," Elrond turned to her now, "Pen-ii that is all the story? No more story?"

Still she did not raise her head, but she shook it slowly.

"Well at least she admits there is more," said Halbarad softly. "And there would have to be. A Balrog would not let them just walk out of there."

Erestor's face was pale, his jaw tight, "Or else it would follow them to Lorien."

There was another appalled silence as that idea sunk in.

"Pen-ii?" Elrond's voice was gentle but his tone insistent.

Again she shook her head, and when she spoke they could hear her struggling to maintain her composure. "Not question, please, Lord Elrond. Please. Do not ask me. I not talk. I not talk. Please."

"Pen-ii, these are our friends, whom we love dearly. We cannot... a Balrog, Pen-ii! A Balrog!"

"Look, I did not want to tell you! I... If it had been up to me, I would have not said a word, but you insisted, Mithrandir insisted, and I knew you were right because I can't keep carrying this about with me, I can't. It's not possible – I'm not built for this, for God's sake! I'm only human!"

She was crying as she spoke, but they could hear her anger and frustration. Elrond's surprise and annoyance at her tone with him were clear in his face.

She said in Sindarin, "Me human, Lord Elrond. This is difficult. Difficult knowledge. I not want talk. You say, Halbarad say, Mithrandir say I must talk. I talked. I talked, and now I not talk. I not talk more. I have talked. Too much maybe. Maybe I.." She did not know how to say it so she muttered, "Forgive me I say 'Balrog.' Better you not know that maybe."

Elrond nodded. "I understand, Pen-ii. We have no choice but to accept what you are saying and not act upon this. Though it is hard indeed."

Erestor was saying, "Perhaps we should send some after them to deal with this, though? Glorfindel, perhaps?"

Penny's head shot up. She had heard Glorfindel's name and immediately guessed what Erestor may have been suggesting, "NO!" The alarm in her voice shocked them. "No, Lord Elrond. Please. I talk, you not work, you not move." She hoped they understood her. They did.

Halbarad came to her now, crouching down beside her chair, one hand on the chair arm, the other holding her hand. "Pen-ii, the Nine Walkers are our friends. We must help them. Balrog very big evil, Pen-ii. I know you know this."

She shook her head, tears streaming down her face. She definitely would not tell them about Mithrandir now. Not with the reaction just this news had got. "No, Halbarad. They not inside Moria now. Now they inside Lothlorien. No Balrog. Balrog... Not Balrog now." She was not sure if they would be in Lothlorien yet, or whether they had even left Moria but they may well have done. So it was not a deliberate lie, she told herself.

Halbarad looked confused. "No Balrog? You mean..." He looked at Elrond. "How would that be possible?"

"How, Pen-ii?" Elrond was looking at her intently.

She looked him straight in the eye and he could see that she knew the answer, but also the strength of will written on her face. "No, Lord Elrond." She said very firmly. "Galadhrim will enter Imladris. They will tell you. Not me."

Elrond opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again, realising she was resolute. They had to respect her decision. As it was, she had told them astonishing and very worrying news. But the idea that there was more, and worse, concerned him very greatly indeed.

Penny looked up at them all and regretted having said anything at all. The expressions on their faces showed their shock, their bewilderment and their concern. She wondered if them knowing there was more, though not what it might be, only made it worse.

She suspected it probably did.

* * *

Author's Note: My sincere thanks to 'Mumstheword' for beta-ing this chapter. hugs

Thank you too to 'Me' for defending Penny's corner: you summed up the situation absolutely.

I would remind all readers that Gandalf himself (a Maia) has told her, several times, not to say anything to anyone, nor try and change anything, and he has made this clear to the other five questioners who all agreed and understood entirely.

What is at stake is the downfall of Sauron. That is of paramount importance. Nothing, not even one person's life, is worth putting that at risk because if Sauron wins it is all over: either everyone is dead or they will wish they were.

This is the harsh reality Penny is having to face; the weight and burden she is having to carry. It is a very difficult situation for her to have to be in, nor is it as 'easy' as some would think. It is far from easy, and whatever decision she made she would be wracked with guilt and indecision (as she currently is).

To say she has 'no character' by following Gandalf's orders (and her own gut instinct) not to put Sauron's fall in jeopardy, no matter the cost that entails, is extraordinary. Many would not have the strength of character to do what she has done. It remains to be seen if she will be able to sustain it, or if Halbarad's imminent departure will make her break completely.

Forgive me, however, if I have made Penny's character and understanding of the situation such that she is trying to follow Gandalf's request of her. I easily could have had her try and stop things. IMHO it would have been a less interesting story if I had, however. I have yet to read a fic where someone does NOT try and change things. I wanted to write something a little bit different. :)


	26. Sending Out An SOS

**Chapter 26** - _"Sending Out An S.O.S."_

Penny made her excuses and left for her chambers. She slept little, though. While it was a relief in some ways to have said something at last, her fear that they would act upon what she had told them nearly consumed her.

Gandalf had told her to tell Elrond. He would not have done so unless he trusted Elrond implicitly not to act. Penny had to hold on to that. They had promised her they would not do anything.

Erestor was perfunctory with her and clearly preoccupied in her lesson the following morning. She did not blame him and knew it was not directed at her.

Halbarad came to watch her as she rode round the paddock, and she was pleased to see him. He puffed away on his pipe, nodding every now and then as she cantered, trotted and walked the horse, turning this way and that as Lindir directed her.

After only a little while Halbarad said something to Lindir, who nodded in response. Halbarad then disappeared up the path, returning a short while later astride his stallion. Lindir called for Penny to stop what she was doing and indicated Halbarad waiting patiently for her at the paddock gate.

"You will finish your lesson with Halbarad, Pen-ii. I will see you back at the stables."

She nodded and made her way to join Halbarad, who turned his steed to lead her on the path that meandered down the valley.

She had done this a few times now with Lindir – left the paddock for a short, slow ride on horses through the trees – but this was the first time with anyone else. She was both pleased and nervous that it was Halbarad.

"Your riding is improving, Pen-ii. Well done. Admittedly it is easy enough with elvish trained horses, but even so, you are learning a useful skill and doing so well. I am impressed."

She understood enough to realise he was complimenting her and murmured her thanks.

They continued in silence for a little while. She wondered if he was going to mention last night at all, or just try and pretend it had never happened. He must be thinking about it, now as preoccupied with it as she had been all this time.

He was murmuring something and shaking his head as if in disbelief. He looked at her. "That was quite something you told us last night, Pen-ii. I do not disbelieve you, but it was a lot to take in." He shook his head once more as he muttered, "May Elbereth protect them all."

She could guess what he was talking about.

He continued, "It is hard not to act on this. Very hard. Elrond had to do a lot of talking last night to stop Erestor and myself gathering people together to ride out there. I understand, but it breaks my heart not to defend my friends, to help them. I just hope they are safe. You said they are in Lothlorien now?"

She nodded.

"Well, that is something at least."

Silence once more. Penny was not sure she was comfortable with all this, but she held her tongue.

He stopped the horse and looked at her. "Pen-ii? Will you tell Elrond about Boromir?"

She gasped slightly, managing to maintain her presence of mind enough to stop her horse also and glance back to him.

"I think you should. I think you should tell him everything you know. What you said last night - Moria, the wolves, the Balrog - that is only a small part, is it not? There is a lot more knowledge you have, a lot more - and a lot more evil, is that not so?"

She was staring at him, wide-eyed, understanding enough of what he was saying to know what he was asking her. She nodded slowly.

"Then tell him, Pen-ii. Tell him all you know. Even if you do it slowly, you must still tell him. It is too much for you, too difficult. He will understand, and better than you might think. Promise me, Pen-ii. Promise me you will tell Elrond everything."

She nodded. "I will talk," she said in Sindarin. "I will talk all I know. Not now. Soon maybe. Not now but I will talk, Halbarad."

He nodded, his smile grim. "Good." He started his horse walking once more and Penny joined him.

The long silence that followed was a brooding one, full of unspoken thoughts and questions.

To break the mood Halbarad turned to her, trying to sound bright and inconsequential in his tone. "Tell me about yourself, Pen-ii. I know little of you, of your family. Do you have brothers? Sisters?"

She smiled a little. "I have one brother only. He small. Smaller."

Halbarad nodded, smiling also.

"My mother she work. I not live with my mother. I live alone."

Halbarad raised his eyebrows a little. "You are not married?"

She shook her head, laughing. "No! No, no, no. Mithrandir he not told you?"

"No, he said nothing. So I take it you have had this conversation before?" He could see she hadn't understood him. "You told Mithrandir this? About your family?"

She nodded. "A little."

"And your father?"

Her face clouded then. Halbarad wondered what he had said to upset her.

"I not know my father."

"He died? I am sorry, Penny."

She repeated 'died,' not knowing the word. With hand gestures and explanations Halbarad made himself understood.

"Oh. No. He walked. My mother," she made a sign to indicate a large stomach, "with my brother. Me, small. He left, went out of house. She not see him again."

Halbarad stopped his horse. She did the same and saw his eyes were blazing in rage. "What? He left your mother pregnant and with a small child! What kind of man is this? Elbereth! I would gladly wring his neck!"

She was not quite sure what he had said, but she was very touched by the clear sentiment expressed and smiled sadly. "Long ago, Halbarad. Many years."

He had started the horse walking again, but she could see he was still livid.

"What about you, Halbarad?" she said. Then in Sindarin, "You? Family?"

He nodded, smiling a little now. "Three sons."

Penny smiled broadly. That pleased her, though she knew not why. She could see him as a father. "Really?" she beamed.

"They are quite full grown, Pen-ii. All older then you, though they look nearer your age, the youngest particularly." He could see her brows were furrowed slightly as she tried to follow what he was saying. "All three big. Older than you."

She grinned. "I bet they are." In Sindarin she asked, "You, how many years, Halbarad?"

He grinned at her. "Ah, now that would be telling, Pen-ii."

"I know you old man, Halbarad."

He laughed out loud at that.

"Sixty? Seventy? Same as Aragorn maybe?"

He smirked at her. "No, Pen-ii. Aragorn _is_ an old man."

She giggled.

"Almost seventy."

She nodded. So she had been right, then. Old enough to be her grandfather. She looked at him, at how he looked little more than forty if not less. So bloody strange.

He could guess what she was thinking and laughed softly.

After they had gone a little further she said, "So you are married, Halbarad?" She repeated it in Sindarin, but as soon as she saw his face, she realised she had said the wrong thing. His jaw tightened and his face grew dark.

"She died, Pen-ii," was all he said, his voice quiet suddenly.

"I'm... I'm sorry, Halbarad. Goheno nin. Saes. Goheno nin."

"Please," he held up his hand, trying to smile a little, "it's perfectly all right, Pen-ii. You were not to know. It was a few years ago now. Do not concern yourself."

They talked little after that, but they had a pleasant ride nonetheless. Halbarad even took her to some more open ground where she could trot and then canter a little, which she enjoyed. He seemed pleased by her progress, which helped to break the mood once more.

After they had taken the horses back to the stables and then had lunch, Halbarad was explaining he needed to leave once more.

"But you've only just got here! You can't, Halbarad, please!"

He understood her well enough.

"Pen-ii, I came just to see how you were coping, how you were. Otherwise I would not be here at all. I am needed, out there." He pointed out towards the entrance to the valley. "Many wolves, Pen-ii." He knew she knew the word now. "Many wolves, and worse. You know the work I do, that all the Dúnedain do. I know you understand. I must go."

She nodded and tried not to sound like a sulky little girl. "I know, but it's not fair. You haven't even been here hardly two minutes, and you're rushing off again."

"Much work to be done, Pen-ii. Glorfindel, Elladan and Elrohir are not here either. Many other ellyn also are out there, protecting Imladris, helping the Dúnedain. We cannot afford to sit by and let the wolves attack or congregate in big numbers. I have to go. My sons are out there also. What father would I be to them if I let them work alone?"

He smiled, hoping she had understood him. She had. She returned his smile.

"I know. Forgive me. You go. Go help your sons."

He nodded.

"Will you come and help me saddle up? You _are_ now an expert!" he grinned at her.

She had no idea what he had just said, other than asking her to help with his horse. She suspected the rest was a joke at her expense, so she stuck her tongue out at him, making him laugh.

She was going to miss him.

She quickly shut that thought out of her head as they walked slowly across the snow to the stables.

Halbarad was pleased he had come to see her and pleased beyond measure she had finally spoken a little of what she knew, even if what she had had to say had shaken them terribly. He was glad also they had had their ride this morning. It had brought them a little closer, he felt. To learn of her father's treatment of his family made him all the more determined to stand by her from now on. He had never had a daughter. He smiled sadly.

Penny was crossing the yard, leading his horse to him. He was delighted by the progress she had made with her riding and horses in general. He remembered how terrified and skittish she had been around his own when they had first met.

Elbereth, that seemed so long ago now. She had changed utterly. He much preferred this Pen-ii, and not just because she was no longer screaming and cursing at him. She seemed more relaxed, more herself, more rounded as a personality. He wondered if she was not, in fact, different from the woman she would be back home. He suspected so.

He mounted quickly and turned the horse to face the path out of the yard. He held out his hand to her. "I will return when I can, I promise. You remember the promise you made to me, Pen-ii: tell Elrond. Talk to him. Remember?"

She nodded. "I will, Halbarad."

He smiled, squeezed her hand and murmured, "Navaer."

She returned his farewell and watched him leave.

A little over two weeks later, he was back and Elladan was with him. Halbarad was a little concerned she still had not talked to Elrond in that time, and told her so, in front of Elrond and his son. She was a little peeved.

"In my own time, Halbarad, don't push me!" She switched to Sindarin. "Not now. After Galadhrim come. Not before. Nothing to tell. They all in Lothlorien now. They stop there one month. Do not make me speak when I do not want to."

Halbarad nodded, but she could see he was still worried. "Honestly, Halbarad, I am fine. Really. I promised you I would talk to Lord Elrond, and I will."

"If she promised you, Halbarad, leave it at that. Do not push her or we may never know," Lord Elrond said to him quietly.

The next day at breakfast, Penny's heart leapt to her mouth when she saw two blond elves eating with the rest. She let her gaze flick up towards them time and again. Bilbo dug her in the ribs, swallowing a mouth full of bread and jam as he pointed the butter-knife at them and mumbled, "Galadhrim. From Lothlorien."

She had not needed Bilbo to tell her. She had already guessed.

Like the scouts who came back every now and then, they looked dishevelled and a little dirty, but their hair, as ever, was well combed. She giggled a little, in spite of herself. At Bilbo's raised eyebrow she said, "Always ellyn nice hair. Neat. Even after long travel, neat hair."

Bilbo chuckled and nodded. When he had finally swallowed his mouthful he flapped his hand at her to hand over her Sindarin reader, and then he started to test her in advance of her lesson.

She wondered if the lesson might be cancelled, though, and she arrived at Erestor's study to find he was leaving as she had suspected. She knew where he was going.

"Forgive me, Pen-ii. No lesson today. As you are no doubt aware, Galadhrim have arrived, as you told us they would. They will have news, and I must go."

She nodded. "Yes, Erestor."

As she stood to one side to let him past her she touched his arm and he turned to her.

"Yes, Pen-ii?"

"Erestor..." She hesitated.

"What is it?" His voice showed his concern as he saw the anxiety on her face.

"Erestor, the Galadhrim... They will say... they will have big knowledge. Forgive me I not say before. Maybe you will understand why when you listen. I not wanted you to listen that knowledge from me. Better from them. Forgive me."

Erestor looked at her, his brows furrowed even more deeply. She had said to them there was more that she knew and she had refused to say what it would be, that Galadhrim would come and tell them instead. It was clearly quite serious, though, judging from her present demeanour. As serious as a Balrog? Perhaps more serious? Erestor was quite worried now.

He nodded at her. "Very well, Pen-ii. I shall hear what they have to say. I realise you made a decision not to tell us. Do not worry, I am sure you had your reasons. I will see you later, no doubt." With that he left, marching down the corridor towards Elrond's study.

She went to find Arwen and sat with her in a small antechamber doing some sewing. Arwen noticed she was quiet and knew it would be about whatever news the Galadhrim had brought.

An hour or so later there was a knock on the door. Elrond entered.

Arwen took one look at her father, at his pale face, eyes still bright with tears and his jaw clenched and she gasped a little.

"Father, what is it? What has happened?"

For a moment he could not speak. Then he looked straight at Penny, "I think Pen-ii could tell you better than I." His voice was quiet, calm, but there was an edge to it that made Penny feel suddenly very nervous. "You knew, Pen-ii, did you not? You knew and you refused to tell us, to tell me. How could you? How could you keep something like that from me! Do you realise how much jeopardy you put them in! The entire quest is teetering on failure!"

Penny had not understood him, but she realised he was angry. She had not quite expected this reaction, but then she had not really thought through what reaction they would have. She had only known she did not want to be the one to tell them.

"Forgive me, Lord Elrond," she whispered, her throat tight. "Forgive me, I thought better they tell you. Better you hear this from them, not me. This big knowledge. Not right that I tell you."

"You stupid woman! Mithrandir is dead, and you are worrying about hurting my feelings! Elbereth, Pen-ii!"

Arwen was white with shock. "What! Mithrandir...!" She turned to Penny. "You knew?"

Penny nodded, close to tears now. "Balrog. He fight Balrog. Balrog fall at bridge, but pull Mithrandir also."

"And he died, Pen-ii!" Elrond was a little calmer, but his eyes still flashed. "Now there are decisions to be made. I thank Eru we had Halbarad here when we found out about this. You should have told us."

Before Penny could say a word he had stormed back out of the room.

There was a brief silence filled with the sound of Arwen's quiet sobs.

"Why did you not tell him?" Arwen said quietly at last, not able to look at Penny.

"He is not dead."

Arwen stared at her through her tears. "What?"

"He dies. Then he lives. He returns. I knew it was big knowledge, but not what you believe. He will come back."

Arwen's mouth was open in astonishment. Then she recovered herself. "You must tell him, Pen-ii. You must tell him this."

"I think he should choose his action first, Lady Arwen."

Arwen stopped, looking at her. "Something will be decided because of this? A decision will be made?"

Penny nodded.

"That's why you said nothing. You did not want that decision changed, nor when it took place. I understand. I still think you need to tell them this. Come, come with me, and we will see what they have decided. They have been there some time already. It may be they know what they will do already."

Penny reluctantly took the hand Arwen was holding out to her and let her lead her to Elrond's study chamber. As they neared it they passed by the two Galadhrim, clearly having just left there. They bowed to Arwen, obviously recognising her, and greeted Penny also before hurrying off. Both had looked very uncomfortable, as anyone who has had to relay terrible news would do.

Arwen knocked and there was a brief silence before they heard Elrond say, "Come in."

As they entered Penny could feel the atmosphere directed towards her.

Elrond's eyes were narrowed as he sat behind his desk. To one side stood Erestor, his face pale and his jaw tight, and upon seeing Penny he shook his head sadly as if disappointed in her. Halbarad looked furious, but he alone looked at Penny with some compassion in his eyes. Elladan's eyes were still wet with tears, and there were tracks on his cheeks where one or two had fallen. He positively glared at Penny as she came towards them.

"Has a decision been made as to what you will do in the light of this new information?" Arwen's voice was surprisingly calm and the males looked in wonder at her.

"We believe so. The request from Lothlorien is very clear. We have no other options, I do not think, bar that one," answered Elrond.

Arwen turned to Penny. "Tell them," she said kindly.

All eyes focused on Penny. She swallowed.

"Mithrandir is not dead."

Gasps and murmurs.

"Pen-ii, I can assure you he is," said Erestor quietly. "One of the Galadhrim spoke with Aragorn and Legolas. They saw him fall. He fell in Moria."

"I know, my lord, but Mithrandir not die when he fell."

Elrond looked at Penny levelly. "Go on, Pen-ii. Tell us what you know and chose to keep from us till now."

"Balrog and Mithrandir fight while fall. Sword," she said for good measure, "Glamdring." They nodded. "Into water. Balrog not Balrog now. Now like snake." It was the nearest thing she could think of though it was not strictly accurate. "Balrog and Mithrandir down under mountains. They fight. Many evil things under mountains. Balrog and Mithrandir climb stairs up mountains. Still they fight. On top of mountain, Balrog died."

They understood and nodded.

"That's why she stopped us sending people after them to deal with this," said Halbarad quietly.

"Mithrandir he... he... died... on top mountain."

Everyone stiffened slightly. Some let their heads drop in grief and disbelief. Elrond sat silent and stony faced.

"Mithrandir," she made a motion moving away with her hand. "Went not to Valinor, beyond Valinor. Eru maybe."

Elrond's eyes were wide with astonishment and all the others were looking at her.

Elladan was murmuring. "Eru? Eru Himself? It's not possible that she could know that..."

"'Not you finished Mithrandir. You go back.'" She made another 'going' motion with her hand. "Mithrandir he returned." She made a beckoning or returning motion with her hand.

She was not sure they were following her, though they must have guessed some of it, judging by their open mouths and bewildered faces.

"Pen-ii, what are you saying?" Elrond could barely form the words.

"Mithrandir not grey now. Mithrandir white."

They all looked at each other.

"Before Saruman white. Today, tomorrow Mithrandir white."

They had understood her correctly.

"White? Mithrandir will be the White? The head of his order?" Elrond was asking her. She nodded.

None of them could quite get their heads round Mithrandir dying and coming back again.

Erestor shook his head, "Eru indeed moves in mysterious ways. This... this is..." Words utterly failed him at that point.

They looked stunned.

At last Elrond spoke, the astonishment clear in his tone of voice. "I feel I owe you an apology, Pen-ii. I understand why you did not tell us. Mithrandir will..." he hesitated before saying it since he could still scarcely believe it, "return."

Penny nodded.

"He joins the eight at Lothlorien?"

"No. After they leave he comes to Lothlorien. The nine are not nine. The nine are now eight."

Elrond's face showed his concern.

"We have been asked to help, Pen-ii. And we shall help. If Mithrandir does not join them, then the request for help still stands."

She nodded. "I not wanted to tell you before you decided. You have decided?" Penny was trying to maintain her composure.

"Yes, we have, Pen-ii. The Dúnedain will ride south, as many of them as can be mustered in the little time we have available to us. Elladan and Halbarad will leave now, as will as many scouts as we can spare. Then they will meet here in a week. We have to move fast. Time is precious."

Penny surprised herself. She did not break down, nor feel an overwhelming urge to flee the room.

Instead she nodded and, murmuring apologies, she left with Arwen and then made her way to her chambers, where she sat for some time in absolute silence, staring out of her window at nothing in particular.

Elrond, however, had felt a tremor in her as he had said what their decision was. It was immediately clear that she had known what he would say, but just for a brief instant he had seen the deepest sadness in her eyes.

* * *

Author's Note: This fic will end with Halbarad's departure. It provides a clear arc for the story: we start with Halbarad and we end with him. However, I have offered to write a sequel, picking up from the end of the War, where Penny would travel with Elrond and Arwen over the mountains to Lothlorien, then on to Edoras (Elladan & Elrohir met and escorted their sister there) and then on to Minas Tirith itself for THE wedding of the Age. So the question to all readers is: 'To sequel, or not to sequel...?' grin

Once again I'd like to thank everyone who is reading as well as those who have reviewed. Your support and feedback have been a little overwhelming, entirely surprising and infinitely rewarding. I am just glad people have enjoyed it.


	27. The Final Curtain

**Chapter 27** _- "The Final Curtain"_

Halbarad and Elladan left within the hour. Penny was still sitting at her window, and she watched them leave. She could not bring herself to go down and say farewell, knowing that now was not the time for prolonged conversation.

She was utterly numb: in shock, in some ways. For all this time she had tried not to think about it, had literally shoved it out of the way in her mind, tried to not focus on it or bring it to the fore. Yet it had sat there in the back of her head, gnawing away at her.

What could she do?

What on EARTH could she do?

If she told Elrond, even if she told Halbarad, would that stop them? Of course not! He rode to his potential death every day. Every time he faced an orc or troll or wolf, he knew he could die at any second. All she knew, or vaguely remembered, since she could not even be sure, was that he died at the Pelennor. She did not know how or even when exactly: the battle was a long one.

'You will die at this battle, but I can't tell you by what creature, weapon or when precisely it will happen.' How was that of any use to anyone!

It was some time before she began to cry, and when it happened they were hot tears of blind fury and frustration.

There was absolutely nothing she could do about this. Nothing. She was a bystander, a mere watcher as people fell. This was horrific... nightmarish. She thought of this good, kind man, who had done so much for her, had shown her so much friendship and gentlemanly honour even when she was swearing up a storm at him. She thought of his sons...

A gentle knock disturbed her.

"Pen-ii? Are you quite well? No one has seen you for a little while and you were not at lunch, so I thought I should come and check on you. May I come in?"

She wiped her eyes, doing her best to make herself look presentable as she crossed to the door.

"Lady Arwen. Please, come in."

Arwen took one look at her and knew she had been crying. Like her father, she had also sensed something from Penny, which had passed as quickly as it had arrived, when he had spoken of the decision that had been made.

She smiled at her sadly. "I see you are thinking of yet more of what you know. Do you wish to talk? I understand if you do not. Or not yet, at least."

Penny shook her head. "I thank you, Lady Arwen, but no. I not think I talk. Perhaps to your father. I do not know. I... I..." She stopped herself in a sob, but stood for a little moment, struggling to push it all down inside her, to maintain her composure. She continued, "I am well. I thank you. I am well."

Arwen nodded, realising full well Penny was trying to put a brave face on something, but knowing that she had to respect her decision. She wondered what it might be, and if it was any worse or more extraordinary than Balrogs or Mithrandir's death and return.

"Very well, Pen-ii. Should I leave you to your thoughts? Or can I perhaps distract you for a while?" Penny had only caught some of what she said and was a little confused, so Arwen explained, "Shall I leave you alone? Or will you come with me? I hear you have nearly finished your weaving. Will you show me?"

"Yes, Lady Arwen. Please." Penny was glad to have a diversion, though she dreaded to think what Arwen would make of her fairly scrappy attempt at a rag rug.

Arwen did her best to keep Penny busy over the next day or two. Mireth and Eleniel did the same, indeed had been doing so ever since the Fellowship had left. Now that the weather was warming a little, though not by much, there was plenty of digging and sowing to be done in the gardens, which kept Penny very busy indeed. She threw herself into such work with abandon since several hours, if not an entire afternoon, could be lost in such a way.

The nights were the worst. When she was alone in the darkness, with nothing to distract her, she had a hard time not thinking about it and worrying about what, if anything, she could do.

The third night after Halbarad had left, Penny was lying in bed, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling once more till she could bear it no longer. There seemed little point in even trying to sleep. She got up, pulling on one of the heavier dresses she had and then wrapping her shawl about her. She quietly crept along the corridors and down staircases till she reached one of the many little doors that led out into the night. She lit a lantern and headed off into the dark.

She walked slowly, not really heeding where she was going, and not really minding to go anywhere in particular. She just needed some way of filling the hours, perhaps making herself tired enough that she could sleep in spite of herself. It was cold, admittedly, but she just hugged her shawl a bit tighter around herself and headed on under the trees.

At last she came to the spot she and Halbarad had been to on many an occasion: a clearing with a central fountain covered with a gazebo affair of a roof on four tall, slender pillars. She sat on one of the benches there, resting her lamp on the seat beside her, and stared into the night sky above her.

"Why?" she was muttering to herself. "Why... why is this happening to me? How can I just sit still and let this happen?" There was a long silence before she whispered, "But what can I do about it?"

She heard and sensed a movement behind her and spun round on her seat with a gasp. Lord Elrond stepped forward with his hand held up to her by way of an apology.

"Forgive me, Pen-ii. I did not mean to startle you. I saw you walking with a lantern, and wondered what you were up to so late. It is late for you to be walking at night. Very late. You can not sleep?"

She shook her head.

"May I join you?"

"Yes. Please, Lord Elrond."

She was suddenly aware that they had never really sat and talked alone together.

He came to sit beside her on her bench and said nothing for quite some time. The two simply stared up at the stars shining bright above them, the still night air enveloping them both.

At last Elrond stirred a little. "Your candle is burning low, Pen-ii. I think you should return inside. It is too cold for you to be sitting here."

She understood enough to be able to nod and thank him and agree he was perhaps right.

"Pen-ii..." Elrond hesitated. "Pen-ii, you should talk to me. I know Mithrandir told you to do so. I understand why you waited to tell me of his fall, but do not forget I am here, Pen-ii."

He turned to her slightly, and by the glow of her lantern she could see his face clearly enough to tell how kindly he was looking at her. His eyes were full of concern, his brow furrowed gently as he looked at her. He softly placed a hand on her shoulder as he continued, "You carry a great burden. Your knowledge is difficult for you. I understand this. Truly I do. I know there is something about the decision we made that is hard for you. I feel it. Can you talk to me of it? Or not yet?"

Penny understood him, could feel the tears pricking her eyes. "No, Lord Elrond. Forgive me. I have not decided if I talk or if I not talk."

He nodded. "Very good, Pen-ii." He glanced at her, and she could tell that he was studying her, as if assessing whether she was making the right decision, as if wondering how burdened she was. "I will not press you on this," he murmured. "Now go, please. Go into the warm. Go and sleep, Pen- ii."

She thanked him as he walked with her back to the halls and then left her at the foot of the stairs that led up to her bedchamber.

There was something about his demeanour with her that night that meant that, two days later, she made her decision. It was clear to Erestor she was barely concentrating in her Sindarin lesson that morning and he was mildly irritated with her.

"Pen-ii, what is the matter with you? I have explained this three times now; you are barely listening to me!"

She murmured her apologies, furrowed her brow in concentration and tried to give him her full attention.

As soon as her lesson was over and she had taken her books and papers to her room, she made her way back downstairs to Elrond's study. She hesitated a moment, steadying herself, before she knocked tentatively on the door.

"Come in," said the low musical voice from within.

Elrond looked up from his desk as she entered and could not help his eyebrows rising a little in surprise to see her.

"Pen-ii? You wished to see me?"

She nodded. "Are you busy? I want to talk. A little. If now is not good, then later."

"No, no, now is good." Elrond smiled a little to hear himself using her own idiomatic fractured Sindarin. "Now is very good. Do, come in and sit." Indicating one of the more comfortable chairs beside the fireplace, he crossed over to join her.

"Do you wish Erestor or Arwen to be here also? To talk to them as well?"

Penny shook her head vigorously. "No, I thank you. No. Only you. Please."

Elrond nodded. "Very good, Pen-ii." He looked at her for a moment, his face serious but his eyes kind. "Well, what did you want to tell me?"

Penny did not really know where to begin. She stared at her hands for a while, trying to think of what to say and how to say it. Elrond watched her patiently, realising this was hard for her, and letting her come to it in her own time.

At last she looked up at him, her eyes bright with tears. Her voice was thick as she tried not to break down completely. "Halbarad. You must not let Halbarad ride south with the Dúnedain."

Elrond looked at her with a little surprise and concern. "Why?" was all he said, though he guessed rightly enough.

"Please, Lord Elrond. You cannot allow him to ride. Please." A tear rolled down her cheek.

Elrond shifted forward in his seat and took one of her hands in his. "Pen- ii. Will he die?"

Her entire body stiffened. She nodded slowly, struggling to not collapse into a weeping heap.

"Pen-ii, do you know how? When? Where?"

She realised the futility of her request of him, and knew Elrond was about to point it out to her. "There were be a great battle. He will fall. I do not know how. I do not know when exactly. I know... he will fall." She could not bring herself to say 'die.'

"Pen-ii," Elrond began, his voice as gentle as a summer breeze, and the warmth and understanding in it were near enough in themselves to make her weep, "what would you have me do? Or say? I cannot stop Halbarad. Even were you able to tell me the details, he would not let me. His friend, one who is like a brother to him, is in need. Aragorn needs help. Halbarad cannot stand by and do nothing, nor will he, nor would I ask him to."

He was not sure how much of what he was saying she was understanding, but he was trying to keep his Sindarin as simple as possible for her. "Pen-ii, you have to understand. Do you think if he knew he would not ride? No, he would ride south whether he knew or not. He is a soldier, Pen-ii. One used to fighting and battles. He faces death all the time. He is not afraid."

Penny was understanding enough of what he said, and could easily fill in any gaps, since this was all the same argument she had told herself often over the past few days. It was all things that Mithrandir himself had said to her.

There was a silence as they looked at each other: the elf-lord with the wisdom of millennia in his eyes, and the weeping human woman utterly lost and bereft of hope.

Elrond's voice came quiet as he asked, "Pen-ii, does Sauron fall?"

She stared at him wide-eyed. He could not be asking her that. He could not!

Elrond insisted gently, "Pen-ii, does Sauron fall? This story you know, this book you have read, I presume has survived, lasted all that time, for a reason. I only hope and pray it was because it was worth the telling. I hope you know our story because it was a good story, a big story: the story of the fall of Sauron." He hesitated. "Do you understand what I am saying to you?"

She nodded. She did. And she knew where he was going with this as well. Her tears fell all the faster.

"Pen-ii, does he fall? Does Sauron fall?"

She looked into his deep grey eyes and knew. She knew he knew: that he had guessed or perhaps had already sensed it. Whether from her or something else she could not know.

"Yes," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

Elrond's eyes closed for the briefest of moments and he took a breath. Then he nodded slightly, his face filled with sadness as he looked at her once more. "Then, Pen-ii, I cannot change what has been decided. You know that. You should not ask me to do so. I..." and Penny saw his eyes were wet with tears of his own now. "I have know Halbarad since he was a child. I have known many men, and women, who lie in the cold earth now. We elves have to learn to live with your mortality. You die. We do not. This is the way of it. But, Pen-ii," his voice became more urgent now, and he brought his other hand to clasp hers now as well, "nothing is more important than the fall of Sauron. I know that Halbarad would say the same were he here and even if you told him what you know. Do you understand me?"

She nodded, the tears streaming down her face. "Yes, I understand. I did understand. It is why I decided not to talk. Then it was too big, too hard for me. Halbarad is my friend. He is very kind." She was frustrated by not knowing enough Sindarin to be able to truly express what he meant to her, how much this was hurting her. "I do not have the language to say," she faltered.

Elrond lifted a hand to her cheek. "I know," he whispered. "I understand, Pen-ii. Believe me, I understand."

She broke then, sobbing uncontrollably, and Elrond held her till the weeping passed. She felt very foolish and was very apologetic for having lost it so completely in front of him like that but Elrond was very kind and understanding. He even produced a handkerchief from somewhere for her.

"There is little I can say to comfort you, Pen-ii. Do not think I am not greatly saddened and troubled by what you have told me. But there is nothing we can do, nor should we do anything even were we able to. Go. Go and keep yourself busy."

They were standing in front of the open door of his study now, and he held out his hand for hers. He looked her in the eye and said, "Stay strong, Pen-ii. You must. Talk to me, also, whenever you wish to. I am always here. You may come and see me, any time of night or day, you understand?"

She nodded, having got the gist of it. She looked at him. "Lord Elrond. I not know if I should talk what Aragorn do, the eight. If I talk before Dúnedain ride south. Do I talk to you now or after?"

She had given up trying to make sense of this, trying to eke out the information given little by little. Halbarad's imminent departure was too overwhelming for her to see any coherent way through this now or how she should behave with the information she had.

Elrond studied her for a moment. "What did Mithrandir tell you to do?"

"He said when I had the language, the Sindarin, to talk to you."

"Well, you have the language now, do you not? Or enough of it, at least?"

She paused, looking at him for a moment before nodding slowly.

Elrond stood back, spreading his arm into the room in a gesture to invite her to step away from the door while he closed it once more.

"Then, come and talk to me, Pen-ii. If that is what Mithrandir told you to do, we must trust in his wisdom. Come back in and sit and tell me what you know."

So the entire morning till lunch was spent with Penny relating as best she could what the Fellowship went through as they travelled down the Anduin. As she spoke of Boromir she wept once more and Elrond then finally understood her behaviour with him. She did not tell Elrond that Boromir tried to take the Ring, and Elrond sensed she was keeping something from him at that point, but did not press her. Penny was not sure why she did so. She felt... it would be dishonourable in some way to tarnish Boromir's name. He was such a good and noble man. Elrond would no doubt find out from Aragorn, but right now there was no need for him to know. So she kept the details of Amon Hen sketchy, talking of the attack of the Uruk-hai and nothing else.

After an hour there was a knock on Elrond's door. He went to see who it was, and there was a murmured conversation, though with whom Penny could not hear or see. After a few moments Elrond returned to her and bade her continue.

The bell for lunch had rung some while before she finished. The fall of Isengard, the Ents' decision, as well as the great victory at Helm's Deep had near moved Elrond to tears. He still could not get over how much she knew, how detailed it all was.

"You will stop there?" he was now asking.

She nodded. "Then Aragorn find the Dúnedain and your sons. I will stop now. Tell more after they ride south."

Elrond nodded. "Where do they meet? Where should I tell them to look for him?"

Penny looked at him, not sure if this was a question she should answer. "Talk with Halbarad and your sons. Tell me what they say, what you decide. If wrong I tell."

Elrond nodded. "Very well. Now, Pen-ii, we must eat. We are late for lunch." He motioned her to the door.

Penny felt much better than she had done in a long while. It had helped to get it out, even if not all the tale was told. Elrond had been most understanding, listening quietly and kindly, murmuring at some of the more surprising parts of the tale, beaming at Aragorn's heroism or the feats of kuduk in persuading the Ents. His cheeks had been wet with her news of Boromir's fall.

"A noble man," he had muttered. "A great loss for Gondor."

As Elrond opened the door for her and ushered her through, Penny gasped. In the corridor were four Dúnedain, one of them with his back to her, though she could guess who it was immediately. Glorfindel and Elrohir were also with them. All showed signs of long travel still and were leaning up against the painted walls, chattering and muttering quietly, clearly waiting for Elrond to finish whatever it was that was more important than their news.

They fell quiet as they saw her and Halbarad turned, his expression changing from one of surprise to see it was her who had kept them waiting for well over an hour in the corridor to delight at seeing her once again and guessing what she had been doing with Elrond all this time.

"Pen-ii, I am pleased to see you," he beamed.

"Well met, Halbarad. Well met, my lords."

Nods and murmurs from the assembled company. The reek of unwashed bodies was near overpowering. She tried not to wrinkle her nose but Halbarad saw her and laughed.

"I believe we are offensively smelly, my lords," he smirked. "Forgive us, Pen-ii, for not washing first." There were chuckles around him.

"Indeed you are," said Elrond. "Why did you not go to lunch? This could have waited till after you had eaten, surely?"

"We were not sure how long you would be, Adar," said Elrohir. "You weren't terribly specific when I spoke to you, so we thought it best to wait."

"Well, is there anything I need to know urgently, or can we discuss it as we go to eat something?"

Elrond was already walking down the corridor, his son now at his side and explaining whom had been contacted, where word had been taken, who was expected to meet them at Imladris, and who was congregating further south.

Penny, immediately forgotten, ambled along behind them unable to help but gawk slightly at the tall, powerful figures walking ahead of her.

Halbarad hung back a little and fell into step alongside her. "So you have told him? Spoken to him?"

She nodded, immediately feeling uncomfortable as she was reminded of her primary purpose in going to Elrond that morning.

"Good. I am glad, Pen-ii."

He did not press her further. Something on the expressions of both Penny and Elrond as they had come out of his study had been enough to tell him that she had related much, and much that was serious.

That Elrond had kept them waiting in the corridor while she spoke to him spoke volumes.

Already a few Dúnedain had come to Imladris over the last day or two. They were heartily greeted by Halbarad and his companions, and were all introduced to Penny. It was pleasant to be surrounded by human company, somehow, and to finally meet more Rangers face to face. Penny could not stop beaming through most of lunch.

At supper there were yet more seated at the tables, and Elladan had also returned. By the following day a steady stream of Dúnedain were arriving in ones and twos throughout the day.

After lunch she was summoned to Elrond's study once more. His sons were with him, as well as Halbarad, Erestor and Glorfindel. Only those who knew of her and her situation, she noted.

Elrond did not beat about the bush, but got straight to the point. "Pen- ii, they will head south to the Gap of Rohan. They will make their way to Edoras in the hope they might find Aragorn there. I have told them nothing of what you told me, I hasten to add - other than the main events leading up to Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli and Mithrandir being in Rohan in the first place. Can you help us further?"

He repeated himself more simply to make it clear to Penny what he was asking.

She moved forward, seeing they had a map spread out on the table. "Did you speak of the battle? Of Isengard?"

"No. Not yet."

The others were looking from one to the other, intrigued at what she had said but knowing better than to interrupt Elrond or insist he tell them anything.

"Should they be going through the Gap of Rohan? It is the only way with horses, and to get to Rohan with speed," Elrond was saying.

She nodded. She pointed on the map. "Look for Aragorn here." She drew a circle with her finger just south of Isengard.

She glanced at Halbarad, and saw he was looking at her keenly, a soft smile on his lips and a knowing expression on his face.

"Do not ask more, Halbarad. Maybe even this too much."

He nodded. "I understand, Pen-ii."

And that was that.

Penny had had little time to think about it all. In a strange way, speaking to Elrond had helped quite considerably. She had seen the depth of emotion he had shown in learning her news, and yet he was able to carry on, to deal with Halbarad quite normally. Above all else, she did not want to give Halbarad any reason for suspecting something was wrong. That alone was enough to make her keep going, to push it away from her and try to not think about what lay ahead.

She felt like a pressure cooker about to explode, but she would not allow herself to, or at least not before he left.

She let her thoughts drift back over her time here, the mad situation she was in. So much had changed. She had changed. She was not the same girl she was. She would never be the same. Even if she woke up tomorrow back in her little London flat, she would not be the same Penny Baker she had been.

The night before they left, she was sitting with Halbarad, Elrond and his sons and daughter in a small antechamber. Glorfindel and several other Dúnedain were there also. Penny took the opportunity of some lengthy discussion being held between Elladan and his father to lean towards Halbarad a bit.

"Halbarad?"

He looked at her.

"Tomorrow, when you leave..." She was hesitant, unsure of quite what to say.

He smiled sadly. "I am off to war, Pen-ii. It will be dangerous, difficult."

She nodded, feeling her throat constrict a little.

Halbarad took her hand in his. "Pen-ii, come, I want to talk to you." He stood and led her out of the antechamber and down a few corridors till they were alone. The only light was the flickering torches in the walls.

"Pen-ii, you have to realise I may never see you again," he said quietly. "Perhaps some of the men you have met in the last few days will not return. Do you understand me?"

She nodded. She was keeping her gaze firmly on the floor, desperately trying not to break down.

"I want you to promise me you will stay strong, Pen-ii. That you will carry on what you have learnt here: learning Sindarin, horse-riding, the many skills. You have changed so much, Pen-ii. It pleases me to see it."

She smiled a little and whispered a thank you.

"Pen-ii, I know you know something of who may die in this. It may be you know what my fate is."

Oh God. Her heart was in her throat as she guessed his meaning. Her entire body stiffened in spite of herself and it took all her strength of will to not burst into tears or throw herself into his arms.

"But know this, Pen-ii. I would ride south even if I knew with certainty I would die. So would Elladan and Elrohir. So would all those who ride with us. We are needed. Even with our help, the numbers we will have will be small compared to those of Mordor. It may be we will not win, but we cannot do nothing. It would be shameful and terribly wrong to not try and fight this evil: unthinkable. I know you have not known war, and I know you are not used to men being soldiers and warriors. This is our way of life, so I felt I needed to talk to you a little, to help explain."

She was catching most of it, could guess the rest.

"Pen-ii, do not fear. I know what I face. We all know. If it is death, then so be it. But I would rather die in battle, fighting a great evil, than sit here doing nothing, knowing my friend, my brother, is in need: that he asked for me and I did not go to him. Can you understand this? I know it is hard for the women when they wait at home. Too often I have seen their grief when their men do not return – their fathers, brothers, husbands and sons. We are friends, Pen-ii, and it will be difficult for you if I do not come back. I know this. If that happens, know I would not have changed my going, but that also does not mean I do not care what happens to you."

She had silent tears on her cheeks and he pulled her to him to embrace her. They stayed like that for several minutes. Penny's eyes were wide open as she stared ahead into the dark corridor, her heart breaking and yet unable to say a word to him.

What could she say?

At last he stood back from her a little and looked down at her, a gentle smile on his face.

"I understand, Halbarad," was all she could find to say. "May Elbereth protect you. May Eru guide you all in this."

He nodded, his smile widening a little. "I thank you, Pen-ii."

The next morning they were to leave early. Penny was there, watching the horses as they snorted and champed their bits. Halbarad was astride his stallion already when Arwen came out of the Halls, bearing a furled banner. Halbarad nodded as he took it from her, murmuring a few words to her.

As they all readied themselves and turned their horses to face towards the gates, Halbarad urged his steed towards where Penny was standing. He reached down his hand for hers.

She took it, her eyes filled with tears, and her throat too tight to speak.

He said nothing, just held her gaze for a few moments, and smiled slowly. Then he squeezed her hand and murmured, "Navaer," before turning his horse to join the others.

Penny had not noticed that Elrond had moved to stand beside her, and Arwen on her other side. She also did not notice the glance that was shared between them, as if Elrond had imparted to his daughter what Penny had told him.

As Penny watch them leave, her vision blurring with her tears, her throat so tight it was hurting her, she felt Elrond take her hand in his and squeeze it slightly.

As Halbarad reached the gate, leading the Dúnedain riding with him, he glanced behind him and raised his hand to them, smiling as he did so. Penny managed to force a smile through her tears and raised her hand in reply, though her grip on Elrond's hand tightened at the same time.

She stood there, frozen, her hand in the air and the tears running down her face as she watched him disappear from sight.

She faced the long wait of war ahead of her and then would have to try to make a life for herself, here in Middle-earth for as long as she stayed. But at this moment Halbarad of the Dúnedain was riding south, and Penny knew she would never see him again.

**THE END**

* * *

I would like to thank, once again, every one who has read this as well as those who have reviewed and shown such support for this fic.

In particular I would like to thank my betas - bodldops and Mumstheword - as well as my 'canon beta' NL. Without you I would have been sunk. BIG hugs for you all.

Thanks also to those others who have spotted mistakes and helped with corrections – in particular Lippy, Hellga & NancyBrooke.

There WILL be a sequel continuing Penny's tale from the end of the War onwards. It is likely to be called "Okay, NOW Panic". My thanks to everyone who helped me choose the title – that one was the overwhelming favourite ('Mostly Harmless' and 'Stop The World, I Wanna Get Off' being close seconds).

Till next time...

Boz4PM is signing off. (watch this space) grin


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